Let's Read and Discuss "Monstrilio" by Gerardo Sámano Córdova

Join us to discuss "Monstrilio" by Gerardo Sámano Córdova!

Grieving mother Magos cuts out a piece of her deceased eleven-year-old son Santiago’s lung. Acting on fierce maternal instinct and the dubious logic of an old folktale, she nurtures the lung until it gains sentience, growing into the carnivorous little Monstrilio she keeps hidden within the walls of her family’s decaying Mexico City estate. Eventually, Monstrilio begins to resemble the Santiago he once was, but his innate impulses―though curbed by his biological and chosen family’s communal care―threaten to destroy this fragile second chance at life.

A thought-provoking meditation on grief, acceptance, and the monstrous sides of love and loyalty, Gerardo Sámano Córdova blends bold imagination and evocative prose with deep emotional rigor. Told in four acts that span the globe from Brooklyn to Berlin, Monstrilio offers, with uncanny clarity, a cathartic and precise portrait of being human (penguinrandomhouse.com).

Gerardo Sámano Córdova is a writer and artist from Mexico City, currently living in Brooklyn (https://gerardosamanocordova.com/). "Monstrilio" is his debut novel, published in 2023.

Trigger warnings: child loss, death, violence, grief, murder

This month, we are going to try out capping the RSVPs at 20 to make sure everyone gets to engage meaningfully.
Please update your RSVP accordingly so everyone who wants to is able to attend.

🗓️: Saturday, January 31st
⏰: 11 AM-1 PM
📍: Qahwah House, 2869 Broadway