Southpaw

Antonio Mezzano in Umbria, the blind man who gathers village gossip in his one good hand; La Rusa who runs her Rainbow brothel in the Andes; Eladio 'the mad man' who searches with his mute son for the eagle they stubbornly believe will restore them to health; Otto, the political prisoner called Proff who shares his cell with a killer; tiny Silvio the poet on Buona Vita Street; Nanzia, the family cook whose heart is chopped like parsley on marble when love comes her way. In many senses, these are the dispossessed - prostitutes, peasants, shopkeepers, mothers among others - the 'southpaws'. The title reflects the awkward, unexpected elements of these people; each a survivor, each a fighter in his or her own way and each both dogged and shaped by their different approach to life within the narrow parameters of the riles of the ring. Their excellence is shown as much in their ability to receive blows as to administer them - as in boxing. This collection is laced with Lisa St Aubin de Teran's intimate knowledge and love for the people of Venezuela and Italy.