Coastal Mail

For a beginning author, the Sesc Literature Award is the fulfillment of all dreams: prestige, recognition of their talent by experienced authors and critics, publication by a major publisher, and publicity throughout Brazil. What more could someone taking their first steps in their literary career want? For the reader, it's also a chance to discover a completely new writer. And, free from the obligation of liking a book just because someone famous wrote it, admire its uniqueness. Be among the first to recognize the originality of an author's style and the contemporary relevance of the issues it raises. This is especially true of Correio Litorâneo, winner in the short story category of the 2006 Sesc Literature Award. Dear reader, remember Nereu Afonso da Silva's name. You'll certainly hear about him in the future and boast about having read his first book. After all, few authors begin with a collection of short stories like this—so mature, concise, and elaborate. Despite touching on vastly different worlds, their stories are tied together by newspaper articles, giving them a rare thematic unity. In this case, a fictional newspaper with the same name as the book. But the short stories in Correio Litorâneo far surpass any Correio Litorâneo newspaper report, in form and content. Want an example? The short obituary is just the tip of a huge iceberg: the story that opens the book, about Úngaro dos Passos, a thief who recruited not accomplices, but loyal followers. In another story, the dreams of a night of love of a newly met couple are suddenly interrupted. But anyone who imagines finding violent narratives in this work simply because it simulates a connection to reality is mistaken. Even the violence, when it exists, is narrated without strong undertones, with poetry and delicacy. Which already makes a big difference today.