The 3 best books by the surprising Jon Bilbao

I have always said it, the writers who share a generation with the reader are like a friendly voice that communicates in the same language (language and jargon) and that comes from the same scenarios. Then there is the creative ingenuity, the masterful narrative imprint of Jon Bilbao. in this case…, but the wickers are there, forming the shared cultural nest.

I wrote something similar with a David lozano that even focused on a very different literature, it also produces that tune loaded with detectable winks for the seasoned reader. The point is that a point of greater enjoyment can still be found in this type of authors with a common essential imagery.

In the usual process of narrating, Jon Bilbao also traveled the paths of storytelling and storytelling, paths that in the end are never completely abandoned and in which Bilbao proves to be a giant storyteller, like others that fascinate me, a style of Oscar Sipan o Samantha Schweblin . Until we get to the novelist of rennet and residue, forged as things should always be, from effort, trial and error, tenacity, patience and faith in what is done.

Top 3 recommended books by Jon Bilbao

Stromboli

Perhaps it is the connecting link ... that volcano that occupies practically the entire island of Stromboli. Lives that emerge from chance, from the capricious and incandescent effluvia of the imagination. An imagination that rescues the miseries of existence with its usual blushing nakedness depending on who looks at it ...

A motorcycle gang harasses a couple traveling through the United States; a man is forced to eat a live tarantula in front of the cameras of a television program to solve his family's financial problems; Two amateur gold prospectors suffer a terrible accident in the mountains that puts their friendship to the test; the death of two homeless men and the discovery of mysterious ruins disrupt a wedding celebration; a married man and his lover set out on a trip to the island of Stromboli to help someone very important to both of them.

The eight stories that are part of this volume raise questions such as: Where are the limits of family obligations? What are we willing to do to achieve what we want? To what extent do the sacrifices made alter those goals?

What seems like the end of the relationship between two people, can it actually be the beginning of another more powerful but completely different?

Jon Bilbao, one of the most interesting and award-winning current Spanish storytellers, once again demonstrates in "Stromboli" his extraordinary pulse to reveal the disturbing that is hidden behind the most everyday stories.

Basilisk

Westerns have returned as new plots. Or rather it just so happens that two surprising writers like Jon Bilbao and Hernan Diaz have agreed in their free reviews of western scenery. Although in the end it is to talk to us, more than adventures, existential doubts, initiatory trips, situations as surreal as life itself and concerns of all kinds.

Dissatisfied with his job as an engineer, the protagonist of "Basilisco" moves to California, where he meets two people who will change his life: Katharina, a young woman who will end up becoming his wife, and John Dunbar, a trapper and war veteran. of Secession and occasional gunman who has been dead for more than a century. Dunbar embodies what is most genuine about the Wild West. Sullen and feared, he earns the nickname "Basilisk" and takes us by the hand through the gold rush in Virginia City, through a paleontological expedition to Mormon territory and in his escape from a gang of murderers. Meanwhile, the disillusioned engineer, now a writer, delves into the responsibilities and frustrations of middle age.

"Basilisk" is thus arranged in a series of self-concluding chapters, alternating those that take place in the present with those that take place a century ago in the parts of Nevada, Idaho and Montana, and proposing a dialogue between reality and fiction. With a disturbing and powerful prose, Jon Bilbao crosses the border between genres, mixing the classic with popular culture. With the mask of a twilight "western", "Basilisk" puts our reality in check.

Parents, children and primates

The magical chance encounters. The fascinating idea that perhaps one day we can enjoy one of those moments of collusion with destiny to be able to trace forward, but also backward, what we were and what we will be.

At the moment it is a situation that almost always arises in fiction. And nothing better than letting ourselves be carried away by all the kinds of explanations and sensations in this regard that Jon Bilbao brings to the magical encounter of his characters. Life has not gone as well as he expected for Joanes. When he was studying at the Engineering School everyone predicted a bright future for him, but this has not come true. His company is on the verge of bankruptcy. However, everything could change, thanks to the possibility of an important contract.

In these circumstances, with the contract about to close, the last thing Joanes wants is to travel to the Riviera Maya to attend a wedding. Once in Mexico, a hurricane alert forces him to leave her hotel on the coast and move inland in search of shelter. On the way, she unexpectedly meets a former university professor, who is also fleeing the hurricane. The professor, a renowned mathematician, has a manipulative character that invites us to distrust everything he does and says.

In the time that has passed since he finished his studies, Joanes has become convinced that the professor is to blame for his poor professional career. Now, trapped by the hurricane in a guest house in a Mexican village, Joanes will have the opportunity to settle accounts with him. He will be able to verify if his suspicions are true or nothing more than a sophisticated fantasy, although words alone will not suffice for this.

Other interesting books by Jon Bilbao

Spider, Jon Bilbao

To persist in the life and work of the paradigmatic John Dumbar is to satisfy a multitude of readers who were fascinated with Basilisco. Because the imaginary western takes on an unexpected verve in the hands of Jon Bilbao. No one better than him to unearth a genre and polish it to give it a splendor that no one could have suspected in these times...

Reluctant gunslinger John Dunbar leads pilgrims across the United States in search of a promised land reserved only for men. During the trip, he establishes a relationship with Lucrecia, the only female member of the expedition. Jon, author of the stories starring Dunbar, recalls his childhood in Asturias and embarks with his children on a bumpy documentation journey through the Nevada desert.

In turn, Katharina, his ex-partner, visits Paris during a Biblical-looking mud storm and meets someone he never expected to see again. Ultimately, all the characters come across the Spider, of uncertain origin and harmful influence, who is closely linked to both Dunbar and his creator.