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Newborn
Fiction. Novella. "Shafts of afternoon light rained through oak and willow and eucalyptus, the boys' small faces stippled with fine golden sunspots as though behind lacework mourning veils knitted from shadow. They stood side-by-side at the edge of a broad yawn of creekbed, eyes bound to what they had discovered there amongst sedge and blackberry and wild rye. Neither spoke. But for birdsong and the muted hum of cars along the nearby avenue it was quiet, the creek gurgling softly in its summer-thinned course. A mizzle of sunbeams shone across the water in fingernail crescents, quick lustrous flashes where an overturned shopping cart formed a mounded swell. The boys remained in fainter light, motionless beside the small still pool of an inlet shaded by the steep bank's tangle of tree roots. Water skimmers skated over the pond's glassy surface, the insects' needle-thin legs dimpling the youngsters' reflections and the reflection of the infant at their feet, its image little more than a wavering smudge. 'Jesus,' one of them whispered..."."What a gift, what a glorious incantation! Each sentence, each segment in NEWBORN is a stone dropped in a pond of still, deep water awash in quiet reverberation. Like Chekhov or the legendary German writer Wolfgang Hilbig, Maes writes with uncommon lyricism and precision as he traverses the rugged emotional terrain."--Gina Ochsner"The kind of imagination evidenced by a story such as his is a reminder of what a magic trick really fine writing can be."--Erica Wagner
- GenresFiction
112 pages, Paperback
Published February 1, 2020
45 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
November 9, 2022
Wow. Completely gobsmacked by the horror and the beauty of this novella. I think for the most part while reading this, my heart was in my throat and it felt like a broken thing, but the heartbreak was alleviated by the beauty of the prose and the humanity of the characters.
There was power of love in amidst the wreckage of horror and that was really beautiful to me. It was understated though, and all the more powerful for it. If ever there was a book that personified the idea that beauty and suffering are things that actually coexist together, this one is it. The creek, where the boys made their terrible discovery, was very much a character in the novel, ever changing and pressing forward, containing life and death and put me in mind of Hesse’s Siddhartha, where the river comes to play such a pivotal role in demonstrating the nature of life as it is.
Thank you to Whisk(e)y Tit publishers for an opportunity to read this wonderful, beautiful book.
There was power of love in amidst the wreckage of horror and that was really beautiful to me. It was understated though, and all the more powerful for it. If ever there was a book that personified the idea that beauty and suffering are things that actually coexist together, this one is it. The creek, where the boys made their terrible discovery, was very much a character in the novel, ever changing and pressing forward, containing life and death and put me in mind of Hesse’s Siddhartha, where the river comes to play such a pivotal role in demonstrating the nature of life as it is.
Thank you to Whisk(e)y Tit publishers for an opportunity to read this wonderful, beautiful book.
January 22, 2023
Stunning! This is one of those books that takes you behind the scenes of a news headline, removes your personal opinions on what happened and what sort of person carried out the act and shows you the true story of the people involved. The writing is beautiful, Maes has made the most of the setting, the images of the creek bed and surrounding area almost dazzle the reader with their vividness, it makes you feel that you are there to be a witness and the ensuing tragedy feels all the more real for being closer to the story than normal.
Our main character is Bitsy and the journey she is on is a lonely one in a harsh world, no matter what she does you feel for her, she may think she is on her own but every person who picks up this book will be there with her. One of my favourite things about this book was the side characters, they may have only had a very small part to play but you get their full story including life after the book ends, a smart thing to do in my opinion as it adds a lot of depth to this novella.
This is an incredibly moving story that will leave you with a heavy heart, highly recommended.
Blog review: https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2023...
Our main character is Bitsy and the journey she is on is a lonely one in a harsh world, no matter what she does you feel for her, she may think she is on her own but every person who picks up this book will be there with her. One of my favourite things about this book was the side characters, they may have only had a very small part to play but you get their full story including life after the book ends, a smart thing to do in my opinion as it adds a lot of depth to this novella.
This is an incredibly moving story that will leave you with a heavy heart, highly recommended.
Blog review: https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2023...
November 8, 2022
The newborn is dead, and that fact reverberates throughout the small community; touching so many lives. The mystery of the mother and what happened hangs heavily over the people of the town, but their questions remain unanswered.
This book brought to mind Gin Phillips' The Well and the Mine, as both books start with a dead baby. Comparing and contrasting the two books would be interesting; preferably with back to back readings.
Maes writes so gracefully, even the horrific transforms under his hand. He excavates this tragedy with such spare but lush language, it's a joy to read. The small number of pages dwindling down feels utterly inadequate for the reader. More please, Mr. Maes.
Beautifully done, Newborn takes it's earned place in the river of literature; please don't miss it.
This book brought to mind Gin Phillips' The Well and the Mine, as both books start with a dead baby. Comparing and contrasting the two books would be interesting; preferably with back to back readings.
Maes writes so gracefully, even the horrific transforms under his hand. He excavates this tragedy with such spare but lush language, it's a joy to read. The small number of pages dwindling down feels utterly inadequate for the reader. More please, Mr. Maes.
Beautifully done, Newborn takes it's earned place in the river of literature; please don't miss it.
August 11, 2022
Why are more of you not reading this book?!?!?!?!
February 19, 2023
“There in the blackness where she sat on a park bench the girl wished for someone to be with her, thinking despite herself of Art and his tenderness at the picnic table by the reservoir and longing now for some affection akin to it: some simple embrace or gentle hairline stroke.”
January 6, 2023
Elegant and devastating in equal measures, the prose weaves in and out of poetic territory unfurling a story that thrums with heartbreak.
June 1, 2024
“The creek goes unchanged in its changing”
I think Newborn is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. It is written with such gravity and grace that each sentence glistens off the pages, leaving no choice but to follow with empathy. It’s devastating, but necessary. When I finished the book, I was left in an incredibly fragile state. This was such a gorgeous, haunting, and existential journey that continues to stay with me. Agustin’s writing is a blessing to the literary world and this needs to be read. Timely and timeless.
“All the tragedies which we can imagine return in the end to the one and only tragedy: the passage of time.”
-Simone Weil
I think Newborn is one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. It is written with such gravity and grace that each sentence glistens off the pages, leaving no choice but to follow with empathy. It’s devastating, but necessary. When I finished the book, I was left in an incredibly fragile state. This was such a gorgeous, haunting, and existential journey that continues to stay with me. Agustin’s writing is a blessing to the literary world and this needs to be read. Timely and timeless.
“All the tragedies which we can imagine return in the end to the one and only tragedy: the passage of time.”
-Simone Weil
February 6, 2023
I’m in awe of his prosaic style of art and the reality of it.
Agustin Maes Newborn will definitely linger around my silhouette like a well behaved shadow for a while. I don’t even know how to express my feelings. The way the story itself was presented was undeniably heartachingly melancholic. I always looked up to authors who could write in this lyrical way where the words seem to elevate into a different level of being. Like if I read something from a higher dimension with my little three dimensional brain. It takes the reader, me to a place where it is uncomfortable to be but extremely important to do so where forgiveness can thrive hand in hand with empathy, gratitude and fragility. When the author can make the scenes become living breathing characters inseparable from the fate of their world. And I am grateful for the ending as a reader and as a human being.
[At the same time it was extremely graphic as it is in life as well but I feel like I need to say: that I don’t recommend reading this novella for younger readers or people who are sensitive to this matter as we are talking about a group of elementary kids finding a dead newborn beside a creek.]
Agustin Maes Newborn will definitely linger around my silhouette like a well behaved shadow for a while. I don’t even know how to express my feelings. The way the story itself was presented was undeniably heartachingly melancholic. I always looked up to authors who could write in this lyrical way where the words seem to elevate into a different level of being. Like if I read something from a higher dimension with my little three dimensional brain. It takes the reader, me to a place where it is uncomfortable to be but extremely important to do so where forgiveness can thrive hand in hand with empathy, gratitude and fragility. When the author can make the scenes become living breathing characters inseparable from the fate of their world. And I am grateful for the ending as a reader and as a human being.
[At the same time it was extremely graphic as it is in life as well but I feel like I need to say: that I don’t recommend reading this novella for younger readers or people who are sensitive to this matter as we are talking about a group of elementary kids finding a dead newborn beside a creek.]
December 30, 2022
Thanks to The Next Best Book Club for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review!
I went into this knowing nothing about it except that there was a creek, and you should go in just as blind. But know that this is an amazing work, moving and horrifying all at the same time.
Read the full review on my blog!
I went into this knowing nothing about it except that there was a creek, and you should go in just as blind. But know that this is an amazing work, moving and horrifying all at the same time.
Read the full review on my blog!
November 26, 2020
Precise, gorgeous, moving.
May 17, 2022
A book that makes you feel like you need to go shower it off (in a good way!)
July 17, 2025
What the fuck.
November 27, 2022
This book intertwines deep darkness with shimmering light in a way few can.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews