A grandson tries to make sense of his Polish grandfather's past and the story behind his numbered tattoo. A Serbian classical pianist longs for his forbidden heritage. A Mayan poet is torn between his studies and filial obligations. A striking young Israeli woman seeks answers in Central America. A university professor yearns for knowledge that he can't find in books and discovers something unexpected at a Mark Twain conference
In seven interconnected short stories, the Guatemalan countryside is ever-present: a place of timeless peace, and the site of sudden violence. Don Henrik, a good man struck time and again by misfortune, confronts the crude realities of farming life, family obligation, and the intrusions of merciless entrepreneurs, hitmen, drug dealers, and fallen angels, all wanting their piece of the pie. Told with precision and a stark beauty, Trout, Belly Up is a beguiling, disturbing ensemble of moments set in the heart of a rural landscape in a country where brutality is never far from the surface.