Condomnauts (Cuban Science Fiction) - Softcover

Yoss

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1632061864 ISBN 13: 9781632061867

Publisher: Restless Books, 2018

Synopsis

“Yoss (Super Extra Grande) is an eminent Cuban SF writer who also fronts a heavy metal band; his iconoclastic spirit and rock-and-roll aesthetic are on full ingenious display in this daring, rollicking, and joyous novel.... This extended dirty joke is also an impressive science fiction novel with much to say about sex, culture, and what it means to be alien.”  —Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

In the 24th century, Josué Valdés’ rise from an orphan in the slums of Rubble City, Cuba to one of the galaxy’s most accomplished explorers was nothing short of meteoric. On the streets, Josue raced cockroaches for cash—until he discovered his true-calling: as a sexual ambassador for humanity and the Nu Barsa colony.

Every so-called “condomnaut” knows that diplomacy and trade deals depend on sexual pacts in the galactic community—and every encounter becomes a close encounter. While some condomnauts have been raised and genetically enhanced to meet the needs of any tentacled insectoid in the galaxy, Josué is a natural whose ego could eclipse the big dipper. Our intrepid condomnauts travel light years across the galaxy and discover that old rivalries—and prejudices—are never far behind. When the first extragalactic beings arrive in the Milky Way, and with them the potential to negotiate for extraordinary new technologies, Josué must call upon every ounce of his talent to seal the deal for his colony and all of humanity.

Indirectly investigating current sexual mores, Cuban science fiction rock star Yoss plays upon stereotypes while making it clear that under Communist Cuba what is daring is not always funny and vice versa. Following the success of Super Extra Grande and A Planet for Rent, Yoss brings us another uproarious space adventure with Condomnauts, a wildly inventive and unapologetic tale that would make even Barbarella blush.

About this title

From the Author

About the Author:

Yoss (José Miguel Sánchez Gómez). Havana, Cuba, 1969. Stature: 170 cm. Weight: 75 kg. Right-handed. Atheist. Doesn’t enjoy eating avocadoes or cucumbers. Teetotaler. Doesn’t drink coffee, and doesn’t smoke either. Likes spicy food. Biologist, black belt, and an aficionado of pumping iron, speleology, and military history. Dances salsa, merengue, and rock'n'roll. Hates reggaeton. Prefers rock and classical music. Plays the harmonica. Has been the lead singer of a heavy metal band, Tenaz, since 2008. Full-time novelist, essayist, columnist, humorist, raconteur of scientific facts, and chronicler of realist, sci-fi, and fantasy narratives. Considered the foremost Cuban author and one of the leading Latin American authors of these latter two genres. Has published over 30 works, and his writing has appeared in nearly a dozen anthologies. Condomnauts is his third book of science fiction to appear in English, after A Planet for Rent and Super Extra Grande

About the Translator:

When he isn’t translating, David Frye teaches Latin American culture and society at the University of Michigan. Translations include First New Chronicle and Good Government by Guaman Poma de Ayala (Peru, 1615); The Mangy Parrot by José Joaquín Fernandez de Lizardi (Mexico, 1816), for which he received a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship; Writing across Cultures: Narrative Transculturation in Latin America by Ángel Rama (Uruguay, 1982), and several Cuban and Spanish novels and poems.

About the Author

Born José Miguel Sánchez Gómez, Yoss assumed his pen name in 1988, when he won the Premio David in the science fiction category for Timshel. Together with his peculiar pseudonym, the author's aesthetic of an impentinent rocker has allowed him to stand out amongst his fellow Cuban writers. Earning a degree in Biology in 1991, he went on to graduate from the first ever course on Narrative Techniques at the Onelio Jorge Cardoso Center of Literary Training, in the year 1999. Today, Yoss writes both realistic and science fiction works. Alongside these novels, the author produces essays, reviews, and compilations, and actively promotes the Cuban science fiction literary workshops, Espiral and Espacio Abierto.

About this edition

• Publisher: Restless Books
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1632061864
• ISBN 13: 9781632061867
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 208