Overview
Arde Josefina es una obra en minucioso estado de combustión, una novela tan sobrecogedora como deslumbrante.
Josefina y Juan son hermanos; nacieron en Mánchester, pero desde muy jóvenes se mudan a México con sus padres. Su vida en la Ciudad de México es igual que su casa: fría, silenciosa y fantasmal. Jon y Holly son padres distantes; para ellos la crianza de sus hijos es una especie de incomodidad administrativa, un trámite que, al paso del tiempo, se vuelve intolerable.
Es evidente que algo no está bien con el menor de los hermanos: es ansioso y violento, se agrede a sí mismo y a los demás. En un principio, Jon y Holly no quieren enfrentar la posible enfermedad de su hijo, pues ésta resquebraja la pantalla de aséptico orden que han impuesto a sus existencias. Sin embargo, el furioso sufrimiento de Juan lo sacude todo. Acuden con un especialista que diagnostica una esquizofrenia temprana.
La frialdad de los británicos se convierte en franco desprecio y Josefina asume el cuidado físico y emocional de su hermano. Pasan los años y Jon y Holly deciden regresar a vivir a Inglaterra, dejando la tutela de Juan a Josefina. Es la consumación del abandono de toda una vida. Juan debe ser ingresado a un hospital psiquiátrico. Josefina, huésped espectral de su propia vida, nuevamente deberá hacerse cargo de todo.
Arde Josefina es una obra en minucioso estado de combustión, una novela tan sobrecogedora como deslumbrante. Es, también, el puntual recordatorio de que toda familia es un incendio.
ENGLISH DESCRIPTION
Burn, Josefina is a work in a meticulous state of combustion — a novel as harrowing as it is dazzling.
Josefina and Juan are siblings; they were born in Manchester, but from a very young age they move to Mexico with their parents. Their life in Mexico City is much like their home: cold, silent, and ghostly. Jon and Holly are distant parents; to them, raising their children is a kind of administrative inconvenience—an obligation that, over time, becomes intolerable.
It is evident that something is wrong with the younger brother: he is anxious and violent, harming himself and others. At first, Jon and Holly refuse to confront the possibility of illness in their son, as it fractures the façade of sterile order they have imposed on their lives. However, Juan’s furious suffering shakes everything. They consult a specialist who diagnoses early-onset schizophrenia.
The parents’ coldness turns into open contempt, and Josefina assumes responsibility for her brother’s physical and emotional care. Years go by, and Jon and Holly decide to return to England, leaving Juan’s guardianship to Josefina — the final act in a lifelong pattern of abandonment. Juan must be admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Josefina, a spectral guest in her own life, must once again take charge of everything.
Burn, Josefina is a work in a meticulous state of combustion — a novel as overwhelming as it is radiant. It is also a pointed reminder that every family is a fire.
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