Rabia

By Sergio Bizzio

Book Overview

"Fast-paced and entrancing psychological thriller"--Booklist

"A portrait etched in acid of a Buenos Aires society menaced by economic and political crisis. Without value judgement but with light irony, Bizzio reveals the ugly secrets of a family, seen through the eyes of his na ve squatter. The imagery is often blinding and the dialogue pitch-perfect."--Le Temps

Jos Mar a, a construction worker, is in love with Rosa, a maid in an exclusive Buenos Aires mansion. Subjected to constant humiliation by his foreman, Jos Mar a kills him, then hides on an empty floor in the mansion. He silently observes the decadent behavior of the owners and watches Rosa in her most intimate moments. Jos Mar a is also privy to more humiliating experiences--he watches as Rosa is raped by the young son of the family, and so he must kill again.

A metaphor for the decline of a social class, a country, and the resentment that spreads like a plague penetrating to the core of its people, Rage is also a tale of love and suspense that raises the tension with each successive page until it unavoidably shifts toward an intimate, shattering catastrophe. Humor, misfortune, shrewd social commentary, and thrilling erotic fantasy come together, offering the reader an inside vision of contemporary Argentina.

Film adaptation of Sergio Bizzio's Rabia, produced by Guillermo del Toro and directed by Sebasti n Cordero, was presented at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1904738400
• ISBN13: 9781904738404
• Release Date: November 2009
• Publisher: Bitter Lemon Press
• Length: 263 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.1" x 7.6"

Customer Reviews

odd but exhilarating thriller

In Buenos Aires, laborer Jose Maria and mansion servant Rosa meet and fall in love. However, they conceal their romance from her censorious employers Senor and Senora Blinder. When his foreman Dali calls him names, Jose confronts his boss and is fired he feels unjustly as his superior started the incident. In a rage, Jose kills Dali violently. The police seek Jose who tells his beloved Rosa he must leave the city. However, instead of going far away from Buenos Aires, Jose hides inside the huge mansion in an empty area. He watches the owners and their son Alvaro to insure they treat his beloved appropriately while clandestinely stealing food. When Alvaro rapes Rosa, Jose in a rage kills him. This is an odd but exhilarating thriller that sort of feels like taking Hitchcock's Rear Window and relocating it in Argentina. The violent hero is for the most part like a ghost or the comic book Watcher as he keenly observes the goings on inside his small world (self-prison) mansion. This is Jose's tale as his raging mind enables readers to ironically "view" the darker side of society. Harriet Klausner