Plants Don't Drink Coffee

by Unai Elorriaga

Genres: General Fiction; Literary Fiction

Synopsis

Four stories narrated from four different perspectives crisscross throughout this poignant and playful novel. Young Tomas – who wants above all else to be intelligent – embarks upon a dizzying search for a rare blue dragonfly, of which he believes there are only nine or ten in the world (and therefore probably only two or three in his town). Drawing us into the channels of his mercurial mind, skipping through misadventures and stumbling upon a host of small wonders, we are introduced to three generations of his motley family tree and accompany them on their odd quests. From the moonlit creation of a rugby field on a golf course, to the unearthing of the escapades of his anarchist grandfather, a celebrated carpenter, the medley of tales flips on their heads standard assumptions about age, wisdom, sensibility, and truth, inviting us to open our eyes to the bounty of tiny marvels that make up our world.

Release date: October 7, 2011

Publisher: Archipelago

Print pages: 200

Sample

Plants don’t drink coffee. They don’t like coffee, and neither do flowers or trees. Birds don’t like it either. My aunt told me. I do. Sometimes I don’t breathe while I drink my café con leche. One whole mug. It’s a big mug. I down the whole mug every morning, without taking a breath. That’s a record of mine. Maybe I’m the only one in the world who holds that record. Yesterday I learned the recipe for café con leche. Aunt Mar- tina explained it to me. I made some afterwards. By myself. And I made delicious café con leche, maybe the most delicious in the world.