For a character that values freedom, can the confines of a relationship hold them there without inciting resentment? And for a character centered on their own desires, will they be able to shift from sitting upon the throne of their own kingdom to being in servitude to another? The idea of words growing over you, reclaiming you into the wild of language, is a beautiful thought and Baltasar has a mastery of prose that makes it come alive. It is no surprise to learn she is a well-regarded poet. Novelist Leïla Slimani, chair of the judges for this year’s prize, said the books on the list were “bold, subversive, nicely perverse”. Ramon Pardina, guardonat amb el premi Joaquim Ruyra de Blanes - Núria Astorch - Blanes". El Punt Avui . Retrieved February 3, 2019.

Boulder by Eva Baltasar | Goodreads Boulder by Eva Baltasar | Goodreads

Baltasar, by way of Sanches’ translation, conjures a version of motherhood that shies away from the word. Instead, it’s an approximation, asking us to lean away from learned language, from the exact. And perhaps it shouldn’t have a name; maybe some things – like love – are meant to be hard to define.’ In her second novel, Baltasar continues to work on her approach to the body, seen as the very substance of storytelling. Around bodies, considered both as sexual objects and as the medium through which our feelings must be expressed, she is building anew a language by which human beings may, in our era, be able to approach one another.’

MadameTeste

El personaje de Boulder me ha resultado fascinante. Es una mujer dura que no se autocensura. Una mujer fuerte, potente. Una protagonista de la que me he enamorado no por su calidez o empatía, sino por su lado más amargo. Un libro no heteronormativo con una trama nada común. Estos personajes femeninos, que me perturban y me hieren, son los que se quedan a vivir dentro de mí. Os animo a que leáis “Boulder” tanto si conocéis “Permafrost” como si no. Historias de mujeres que aman a mujeres escritas por mujeres. Boulder (2020) by Eva Baltasar is as dark and bleak as the cover suggests. It is also raw, addictive and intense. One aspect is optimistic though: it turns out there are places in the world where gay people do not suffer for expressing their sexual identities, queer couples are treated with respect, and their love feels as natural as air. For example, Iceland, where this novella is set, seems to be free from homonegative attitudes. I wish I could enlist my country here but truth be told, I have goosebumps when I imagine what Samsa, Boulder and their daughter's life would be like in Poland, where the ruling party holds and freely expresses negative feelings towards LGBT people.

Book Review: “Boulder,” by Eva Baltasar - The New York Times

I translated this book slowly, though I can’t remember how long the entire process took. Only that I spent a long while weighing each sentence, re-writing it, reading it aloud, as if the whole thing were a collection of poetry. Which it is, in a way.

And Other Emails

La suya es una subjetividad poética que mira el mundo y descubre que todo eso que nos contiene puede mirarse por primera vez.» Eva Baltasar: “La solitud és l’única manera de trobar-se amb un mateix. Seria bo que els nens ho aprenguessin”

Boulder | Club Editor Boulder | Club Editor

Life develops without overwhelming me, it squeezes into every minute, it implodes; I hold it in my hands. I can give anything up, because nothing is essential when you refuse to imprison life in a narrative. Permagel', d'Eva Baltasar: crònica d'un triomf editorial (Jordi Nopca)". llegim.ara.cat. June 27, 2018 . Retrieved February 3, 2019.Le texte interpelle par sa dureté et réalisme, mais sans aucun pathos, cru et féroce avec des moments d'une grande sensualité. The thing is Boulder has motherly instincts as well as at one point in the novel, holds the baby and feels a sort of kindred to her, a bond which develops in the novel’s conclusion. Au bout de 10 années de vie commune, Samsa veut devenir mère par insémination artificielle; un sentiment que Boulder ne partage pas du tout, mais elle accède par égard pour sa compagne. I wrote three Boulders. Three different novels with the same title and the same intention: portraying a boulder-like character. The title came first; that word was what inspired me. The first and second iterations of Boulder were a struggle, the product of two and a half years of constant writing. I tried to create a character, to be the hand that shapes the soul and maps out a story for the body. But I wasn’t in love with those two characters, who were completely different from each other. I need to want to be with my characters, to meet them again every day, be in their company when I reread the novel, and love them through language, which is the only way I have of touching them. But I couldn’t. Baltasar handles feelings as radioactive material, that is, as something that kills and illuminates us.’