For fiction readers in the US, Latin American fiction normally boils down to a few high-profile names like Borges, García Márquez, or Bolaño. In terms of subject matter, stories about struggle against dictatorial regimes shot through a dose of magical-realism is what a popular reader has come to expect. But as Daniel Galera, guest editor of McSweeney’s 46, puts it, “it’s not so simple anymore.” This month,McSweeney’s Quarterly, one of country’s most popular outlets for literary fiction, has chosen to devote their entire issue to the Latin American crime story.

1. McSweeney's 46 Showcases Latin
American Crime Writing
For fiction readers in the US, Latin
American fiction normally boils down to
a few high-profile names like Borges,
García Márquez, or Bolaño. In terms of
subject matter, stories about struggle
against dictatorial regimes shot through
a dose of magical-realism is what a
popular reader has come to expect. But
as Daniel Galera, guest editor of
McSweeney’s 46, puts it, “it’s not so
simple anymore.” This
month,McSweeney’s Quarterly, one of
country’s most popular outlets for
literary fiction, has chosen to devote

2. their entire issue to the Latin American
crime story.

3. As an article in the Los Angeles Times
points out, there is a logic to the
decision. Crime writing has a way of
straddling the line between “genre and
literary.” The best crime writing uses the
concept of crime as a gateway to tackle
larger social and literary questions
without necessarily resorting the
‘whodunit’ formula. And it appears as
though formula was not the order of the
day with this collection, with stories
ranging from the relatively straight-
forward “The Dirty Kid” by Argentine
writer Mariana Enríquez, to Brazilian
Bernardo Carvalho’s look into the mind
a strange government official in his 11
page paragraph, “Jealousy.”

4. The latest issue of McSweeney’s
contains 13 pieces from all over Latin-
America, showcasing great diversity as
well as some unexpected similarities,
which Galara ascribes to the “anxiety of
influence.” The collection works both as
an introduction to writers that may not
be that well-known in the states, as well
as a celebration of a not often observed
genre of Latin-American writing.

5. For more indepth discussion of the
McSweeney’s 46, check out this article
at the Los Angeles Times. For
interviews with authors represented in
McSweeney’s Latin-American Crime
issue visit here.