Overview

"A radical feminist text, January was the first Argentine novel to represent rape from the survivor's perspective and to explore the life-threatening risks pregnancy posed, in a society where abortion was both outlawed and taboo. In the sweltering Argentine pampas, all things bow to Nefer. Reeds nod when she digs her heels into her horse, unripe peaches snap and fall as she gallops past. Sickly-sweet air bends, churns in Nefer's throat. Nefer measures the distance between her body and the table, and feels something filling her up, turning against her. Her belly swells. Desperate, Nefer visits a local medicine woman who is known to perform abortions but Nefer becomes too afraid to explain why she is truly there. She attends confession at church but cannot confide in the priest. During a fierce argument with her mother, she finally blurts out her secret. With a narcotic musicality and voice scorched through with honesty, Gallardo hangs before us an experience that has been lived and ignored a thousand times over. Nefer closes her eyes. We careen to her and we see. ""Hair-raisingly good . . . the plot explodes."" - Lily Meyer, The New York Review of Books ""Elegant and forceful - I couldn't put it down."" - Catherine Lacey, author of Biography of X ** ONE of THE NEW YORKER'S BEST BOOKS OF 2023 ** A pioneering, revelatory masterpiece of modern literature that conjures the life of 16-year-old girl living on the Argentine pampas - now in English for the very first time With echoes of Edith Wharton's Summer, this radical feminist novel broke the silence around abortion to reshape the way women's bodies and rights were perceived in 20th-century Argentina Perfect for readers of Tove Ditlevsen, Annie Ernaux's Happening, and Claudia Pineiro's Elena Knows A radical feminist text, January was the first Argentine novel to represent rape from the survivor's perspective and to explore the life-threatening risks pregnancy posed, in a society where abortion was both outlawed and taboo. In the sweltering Argentine pampas, all things bow to Nefer. Reeds nod when she digs her heels into her horse, unripe peaches snap and fall as she gallops past. Sickly-sweet air bends, churns in Nefer's throat. Nefer measures the distance between her body and the table, and feels something filling her up, turning against her. Her belly swells. Desperate, Nefer visits a local medicine woman who is known to perform abortions but Nefer becomes too afraid to explain why she is truly there. She attends confession at church but cannot confide in the priest. During a fierce argument with her mother, she finally blurts out her secret. With a narcotic musicality and voice scorched through with honesty, Gallardo hangs before us an experience that has been lived and ignored a thousand times over. Nefer closes her eyes. We careen to her and we see."

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9781953861641

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Reviews

"""A crystalline and tightly-wound story of a young woman's tenacious desire for her own freedom and the rigid, Catholic community that is unable to recognize her as a full human being. Elegant and forceful--I couldn't put it down."" — Catherine Lacey, author of Biography of X “Sara Gallardo's story bursts with intensity, as a young country girl in Argentina confronts the dreadful fact of an unwanted pregnancy. In her desperation, she sees the landscape, her family, her neighbors, become a phantasmagoric world filled with terror.  Nefer's sensitive consciousness is the lens through which we view her situation, as well as the village life surrounding her, all transformed by dread.  This is an exciting, unusual excursion into the mind of a girl whose future has suddenly become a nightmare.” — Lynne Sharon Schwartz ""Sara Gallard's perfect pitch harmonizes with marginalized voices such as Nefer's without ever reducing her to a victim. I often attempt to channel Gallardo's quiet perceptiveness and rebellious prose."" — Maria Sonia Cristoff ""[January], along with Annie Erneaux’s vital book, Happening, and movies such as Portrait of a Lady on Fire, show us the importance of support, and the dangers that come when abortions are sought through sketchy means . . . I’m so grateful for the work Riddle and Shaughnessy have done on the translation. I recommend this book to everyone."" — Tracey Ann Thompson, California Reading ""Rightfully considered a masterpiece of Argentinean literature . . . a powerful examination of class, gender and societal pressure . . . A tour-de-force."" — Leo Boix, Morning Star “Gallardo tells us an excellent story of an unfortunate young woman who, through no fault of her own, is pregnant and has no idea what to do or who to turn to for help.” — The Modern Novel “In less than 120 pages, January offers a vivid, internalized account of a young woman facing impossible odds. . . [January] shows a clear sensitivity to the social dynamics impacting disadvantaged rural communities and the suffocating influence of the Catholic mission churches. But beyond the constraints of her time, it is Nefer’s private horror, as reflected in her relationship to other people and to the natural environment, that makes this such a compelling—and timeless—read.” – Joseph Schreiber, Rough Ghosts"

"""This début novel—by an acclaimed Argentinean writer, and first published in 1958—centers on a sixteen-year-old who becomes pregnant after an assault by an older man. Setting the story in the sweltering heat of Argentina’s Pampas, Gallardo re-creates the world of ranchers and missionaries from the perspective of the girl, with her adolescent confusion and private sense of guilt. Gallardo juxtaposes her solitary desperation—she visits a local medicine woman for an abortion, and gallops recklessly on horseback to induce a miscarriage—with the conservative Catholic society that closes ranks against her."" — The New Yorker ""A crystalline and tightly-wound story of a young woman's tenacious desire for her own freedom and the rigid, Catholic community that is unable to recognize her as a full human being. Elegant and forceful--I couldn't put it down."" — Catherine Lacey, author of Biography of X “Sara Gallardo's story bursts with intensity, as a young country girl in Argentina confronts the dreadful fact of an unwanted pregnancy. In her desperation, she sees the landscape, her family, her neighbors, become a phantasmagoric world filled with terror.  Nefer's sensitive consciousness is the lens through which we view her situation, as well as the village life surrounding her, all transformed by dread.  This is an exciting, unusual excursion into the mind of a girl whose future has suddenly become a nightmare.” — Lynne Sharon Schwartz ""Sara Gallard's perfect pitch harmonizes with marginalized voices such as Nefer's without ever reducing her to a victim. I often attempt to channel Gallardo's quiet perceptiveness and rebellious prose."" — Maria Sonia Cristoff ""[January], along with Annie Erneaux’s vital book, Happening, and movies such as Portrait of a Lady on Fire, show us the importance of support, and the dangers that come when abortions are sought through sketchy means . . . I’m so grateful for the work Riddle and Shaughnessy have done on the translation. I recommend this book to everyone."" — Tracey Ann Thompson, California Reading ""Rightfully considered a masterpiece of Argentinean literature . . . a powerful examination of class, gender and societal pressure . . . A tour-de-force."" — Leo Boix, Morning Star “Gallardo tells us an excellent story of an unfortunate young woman who, through no fault of her own, is pregnant and has no idea what to do or who to turn to for help.” — The Modern Novel “In less than 120 pages, January offers a vivid, internalized account of a young woman facing impossible odds. . . [January] shows a clear sensitivity to the social dynamics impacting disadvantaged rural communities and the suffocating influence of the Catholic mission churches. But beyond the constraints of her time, it is Nefer’s private horror, as reflected in her relationship to other people and to the natural environment, that makes this such a compelling—and timeless—read.” – Joseph Schreiber, Rough Ghosts ""The magnificent English-language debut from Argentine writer Gallardo (1931–1988), first published in 1958, portrays a 16-year-old girl’s dilemma after she gets pregnant . . .  The subtle workings of the story cleverly mirror the characters’ euphemistic dialogue about pregnancy (a relative asks if Nefer’s recently married oldest sister is “in the family way”), and Gallardo’s restraint makes the occasional moments of swelling emotion even more powerful. This deserves to be a classic."" — Publishers Weekly, starred review"

"""A crystalline and tightly-wound story of a young woman's tenacious desire for her own freedom and the rigid, Catholic community that is unable to recognize her as a full human being. Elegant and forceful--I couldn't put it down."" — Catherine Lacey, author of Biography of X “Sara Gallardo's story bursts with intensity, as a young country girl in Argentina confronts the dreadful fact of an unwanted pregnancy. In her desperation, she sees the landscape, her family, her neighbors, become a phantasmagoric world filled with terror.  Nefer's sensitive consciousness is the lens through which we view her situation, as well as the village life surrounding her, all transformed by dread.  This is an exciting, unusual excursion into the mind of a girl whose future has suddenly become a nightmare.” — Lynne Sharon Schwartz ""Sara Gallard's perfect pitch harmonizes with marginalized voices such as Nefer's without ever reducing her to a victim. I often attempt to channel Gallardo's quiet perceptiveness and rebellious prose."" — Maria Sonia Cristoff ""[January], along with Annie Erneaux’s vital book, Happening, and movies such as Portrait of a Lady on Fire, show us the importance of support, and the dangers that come when abortions are sought through sketchy means . . . I’m so grateful for the work Riddle and Shaughnessy have done on the translation. I recommend this book to everyone."" — Tracey Ann Thompson, California Reading ""Rightfully considered a masterpiece of Argentinean literature . . . a powerful examination of class, gender and societal pressure . . . A tour-de-force."" — Leo Boix, Morning Star"

"""A crystalline and tightly-wound story of a young woman's tenacious desire for her own freedom and the rigid, Catholic community that is unable to recognize her as a full human being. Elegant and forceful--I couldn't put it down."" --Catherine Lacey, author of Biography of X “Sara Gallardo's story bursts with intensity, as a young country girl in Argentina confronts the dreadful fact of an unwanted pregnancy. In her desperation, she sees the landscape, her family, her neighbors, become a phantasmagoric world filled with terror.  Nefer's sensitive consciousness is the lens through which we view her situation, as well as the village life surrounding her, all transformed by dread.  This is an exciting, unusual excursion into the mind of a girl whose future has suddenly become a nightmare.” --Lynne Sharon Schwartz   ""Sara Gallard's perfect pitch harmonizes with marginalized voices such as Nefer's without ever reducing her to a victim. I often attempt to channel Gallardo's quiet perceptiveness and rebellious prose."" --Maria Sonia Cristoff ""[January], along with Annie Erneaux’s vital book, Happening, and movies such as Portrait of a Lady on Fire, show us the importance of support, and the dangers that come when abortions are sought through sketchy means . . . I’m so grateful for the work Riddle and Shaughnessy have done on the translation. I recommend this book to everyone.""  – Tracey Ann Thompson, California Reading"

"""A crystalline and tightly-wound story of a young woman's tenacious desire for her own freedom and the rigid, Catholic community that is unable to recognize her as a full human being. Elegant and forceful--I couldn't put it down."" --Catherine Lacey, author of Biography of X"

Author Information

Sara Gallardo was a celebrated Argentinian writer, born in Buenos Aires in 1931. Her debut, January, was published in 1958, and by the time she died in 1988, she had published more than a dozen novels, collections of short stories, children's books, and essays. January received little critical attention when first released and remained out of print for decades before being recovered. It is now assigned reading in high school classrooms across Argentina. Frances Riddle (translator) has translated numerous Spanish-language authors, including Isabel Allende, Claudia Pineiro, Leila Guerriero, Maria Fernanda Ampuero, and Sara Gallardo. Originally from Houston, Texas, she lives in Buenos Aires. Maureen Shaughnessy's (translator) translations from Spanish include works by Hebe Uhart, Nora Lange, Margarita Garcia Robayo, and Luis Nuno. Raised in Portland, she now lives in Bariloche, Argentina. Maureen's translation of Hebe Uhart's The Scent of Buenos Aires was a finalist for the 2020 PEN Translation Prize.

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