Pedro and Marques Take Stock
A Picaresque Novel
by José Falero
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Pub Date Nov 07 2023 | Archive Date Nov 07 2023
Astra Publishing House | Astra House
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Description
In the favelas of Porto Alegre, Brazil, marijuana is hard to come by. Supermarket stock clerks Pedro and Marques spend their days unloading trucks, restocking shelves, and dreaming of a better life, of breaking the cycle of poverty that has afflicted their families and their community. Well-acquainted with the drug dealers in their neighborhood and seeing an opportunity to earn a little extra cash, they decide to start a weed-dealing operation.
The economic hierarchies of Porto Alegre are turned upside down as, almost accidentally, the two men build a thriving enterprise and get rich, quickly. Distribution grows from dime bags to kilos, and Pedro and Marques begin to plan for a future where low-wage work will never again be a necessity for them and their families. All too soon however, their operation starts attracting outsider attention, and cracks in their carefully crafted and seemingly untouchable world begin to show, culminating in one final, lethal showdown.
A witty, voice-driven, and electrifying portrait of poverty and a canny examination of the ethics of drug dealing and low-wage labor in the underbelly of Brazil, Pedro and Marques Take Stock is a contemporary picaresque novel of class and crime.
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781662601231 |
| PRICE | $25.00 (USD) |
| PAGES | 304 |
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Ezra F, Librarian
A clever and entertaining look at the ethics of street level drug dealing. While set in Brazil, this picaresque novel could easily have taken place in the outer boroughs of New York, Chicago's South Side, or Oakland, CA. In Julia Sanches' slangy, streetwise translation, this is novel that's read with the ears as much as the eyes.
Reviewer 463267
A look at the life of struggle and poverty in Brazil, as two local shelf stockers try to break the cycle when they enter the marijuana business. They don't expect the success they achieve, but things fall apart when they try to go legit.
The characters are real. Not a stereotype to be held up in pity or contempt. There are triumphs, vibrancy and love. But it is also somewhat depressing. Drug dealing, crime, violence and poverty live side by side and it is no wonder that the story doesn't end with everyone living happily ever after. But someone who has struggled to find a path throughout their life does find one.
A look at a world that is very different than my own, but in other ways very relatable and could perhaps be ours very easily.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in return for an honest opinion.
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