Prayers for the Stolen - by Jennifer Clement (Paperback)

About the Book

Includes Extra Libris essays, readers' guides and more.

Book Synopsis

The haunting novel of love and survival that inspired Mexico's official submission for International Feature Film--now shortlisted for the 94th Academy Awards(R) and streaming on Netflix

"Prayers for the Stolen gives us words for what we haven't had words for before, like something translated from a dream in a secret language. . . . Beguiling, and even crazily enchanting."--Francisco Goldman, New York Times Book Review

FINALIST FOR THE PEN/FAULKNER PRIZE - AN IRISH TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR

Ladydi Garcia Martínez is fierce, funny, and smart. She was born into a world where being a girl is a dangerous thing. In the mountains of Guerrero, Mexico, women must fend for themselves, as their men have left to seek opportunities elsewhere. Here in the shadow of the drug war, bodies turn up on the outskirts of the village to be taken back to the earth by scorpions and snakes. School is held sporadically, when a volunteer can be coerced away from the big city for a semester. In Guerrero the drug lords are kings, and mothers disguise their daughters as sons, or when that fails they "make them ugly"--cropping their hair, blackening their teeth, anything to protect them from the rapacious grasp of the cartels. And when the black SUVs roll through town, Ladydi and her friends burrow into holes in their backyards like animals, tucked safely out of sight.

While her mother waits in vain for her husband's return, Ladydi and her friends dream of a future that holds more promise than mere survival, finding humor, solidarity, and fun in the face of so much tragedy. When Ladydi is offered work as a nanny for a wealthy family in Acapulco, she seizes the chance, and finds her first taste of love with a young caretaker there. But when a local murder tied to the cartel implicates a friend, Ladydi's future takes a dark turn. Despite the odds against her, this spirited heroine's resilience and resolve bring hope to otherwise heartbreaking conditions.

An illuminating and affecting portrait of women in rural Mexico, and a stunning exploration of the hidden consequences of an unjust war, Prayers for the Stolen is an unforgettable story of friendship, family, and determination.

Review Quotes

"[A] beautiful, heart-rending novel . . . fiercely observed . . . [Clement] achieves the formidable feat of smooth, clear English that pulses with an energy and sensibility that is convincingly Latin American. . . . A powerful read."--The Wall Street Journal

"What can I say about this novel? That it's extraordinary, electric, heartbreaking, profound? There aren't enough adjectives to describe how moved I was by the story of Ladydi and her friends, of their tragic lives and quiet fortitude in spite of a world that conspires against them. Maybe it's enough just to say this: Prayers for the Stolen is the best book I've read in years."--Cristina Henríquez, author of The World in Half

"The author builds a powerful narrative whose images re-create an alarming reality that not everyone has dared to address but that everyone has definitely heard."--El Paso Times

"Compelling . . . just beautiful."--Diane Rehm, NPR

"With Ladydi, Jennifer Clement has created a feisty teenage heroine who is an unforgettable character."--Good Housekeeping

"The theme of Prayers for the Stolen is the wanton violence inflicted on women and the destruction of communities as a result of the drug trade in Mexico, but Clement's eye for the revealing detail, the simple poetry of her language, and the visceral authenticity of her characters turn that deadening reality into a compelling, tragically beautiful novel."--Yann Martel, author of Life of Pi

"Highly original . . . [Clement's] prose is poetic in the true sense: precise as a scalpel, lyrical without being indulgent."--The Guardian

"What a marvelous writer Clement is. . . . [With] power in a prose that is simple and simply beguiling."--The Scotsman

"Bold and innovative . . . The rich mixture of the outlandishly real and the hyperfabulistic has a certain superstitious power over the reader. Jennifer Clement employs poetry's ability to mirror thought. . . . Superbly drawn."--The Times Literary Supplement

"The most enchanting journey I've taken in a long, long time, and the most important. Prayers For The Stolen is a hand-guided tour through a ruthless true corner of our century, with characters so alive they will burrow into your heart. Stunningly written, magically detailed, you see, smell and taste the action on every page, feel every foible, and miss the candor of these funny, achingly human voices long after you put them down. As the heroine herself might say: not something to read but to lick off a plate."--DBC Pierre, Booker Prize-winning author of Vernon God Little

About the Author

Jennifer Clement is the author of multiple books, including Widow Basquiat and Gun Love. She was awarded the NEA Fellowship for Literature and the Sara Curry Humanitarian Award for Prayers for the Stolen. The president of PEN International, she currently lives in Mexico City.