Description

Juan Pablo Villalobos’s fifth novel adopts a gentle, fable-like tone, approaching the problem of racism from the perspective that any position as idiotic as xenophobia can only be fought with sheer absurdity.
In an unnamed city, colonised by an unnamed world power, an immigrant named Gaston makes his living selling exotic vegetables to eateries around the city. He has a dog called Kitten, who’s been diagnosed with terminal cancer, and a good friend called Max, who’s in a deep depression after being forced to close his restaurant. Meanwhile, Max’s son, Pol, a scientist away on a scientific expedition into the Arctic, can offer little support.
Gaston begins a quest, or rather three: he must search for someone to put his dog to sleep humanely; he must find a space in which to open a new restaurant with Max; and he must look into the truth behind the news being sent back by Pol: that human life may be the by-product of an ancient alien attempt at colonisation . . . and those aliens might intend to make a return visit.

Publisher Review

'This is a book about xenophobia and racism and the conflicted tug between isolation and community. It makes a fine - and deliciously strange - addition to Villalobos' already grand personal canon. Wrought with tenderness, wit, and a wonderful sense of absurdity, Villalobos' latest novel is a triumph.' Kirkus Starred Review ---- 'Invasion of the Spirit People is a celebration of closeness, of friendship . . . It implies a vision of the world that is anti-essentialist and anti-territorial, but is instead inclusive.' Nadal Suau, El Mundo ---- 'An extraordinary novel that you can read in one sitting and which confirms Villalobos's place among the great writers of the city. Stories of rootlessness like these are as valuable as a sociological treatise, especially when they let you know that there's always a friend nearby to give you a hand, which is something that never appears in manuals.' Jordi Garrigos, Ara