The mutations, by Jorge Comensal

Ramon, a successful lawyer and head of a family, experiences - after losing his tongue due to a strange illness - a kind of silent tragicomedy. Carmela, his wife, begins discussions with a husband who cannot answer her questions or engage in conversation. Paulina and Matthew, their teenage children, are preoccupied with their own concerns, while Ramon decides to turn to Teresa, a psychologist who grows marijuana in her attic. Amid this turmoil, Benito (a parrot) appears as a new member joining the Martinez family, and ironically: Ramon is able to communicate with him better than he does with his loved ones. A touching and clever novel, telling in a humorous style how an ordinary family faces the hardships and trials that befall them, just as we all do, with all their weaknesses, flaws, special circumstances, and also with doses of love and pain. A novel that proves that a sense of humor does not stand in the way of depth of thought nor conflicts with it. Written with astonishing narrative intelligence and exceptional literary talent for a first-time novelist. Alejandro Sampedra, Chilean writer and poet Number of pages: 262