Evelina Santangelo

Gothic and horror literature has long been derided as a mere purveyor of chills and thrills. While there is nothing intrinsically wrong with literature providing “cheap thrills”, the genre has, from inception, been more than that. More often than not, it has also reflected (and reflected upon) social and political concerns. One thinks, for example, of Godwin’s radical Caleb Williams, or the urban Gothic of the 19th Century with its portrayal of the misery of the lower classes. In our times, the proliferation of feminist Gothic is a continuation of this socially and politically aware tradition, as are other contemporary works, such as Stephen Graham Johnson’s The Only Good Indians, Ahmed Saadawi’s Frankenstein in Baghdad with its ghoulish portrayal of Iraq and the Peruvian horror of Red April by Santiago Roncagliolo.

From Another World, Ruth Clarke’s English translation of “Da Un Altro Mondo” by Sicilian author Evelina Santangelo fits well in this company. Even though it is not being marketed primarily as a “Gothic novel”, its central premise is chilling and eerie. Set alternately in Brussels and different parts of Italy, Santangelo’s novel imagines a Sicily haunted by apparitions of migrant children, who intermingle with local students, only to disappear, unaccounted for, whenever one tries to pin them down. I call them “apparitions”, but their nature remains vague and enigmatic. One could interpret them as ghosts of youths who failed to complete the deadly sea-journey towards Europe, or spectres of migrant children who died in accidents while working on the black market. Ultimately, however, these mysterious “visions” are possibly best understood as a metaphor – African migrants in Europe are, more often than not, stateless and without an official identity. Like spectral creatures, they are there-and-not-there. At the same time, the panic created by these “apparitions” reflects the often unfounded “fear of the other” which serves to fuel racist rhetoric.

Around this central idea, Santangelo weaves a number of related sub-plots – for instance, the story of immigrant Khaled who, after his younger brother dies in an accident in Brussels, starts an arduous voyage to return his remains home. Or the tale of Karolina, who searches for her missing son, unsure whether he’s joined a far-right group or, on the contrary, whether he’s been radicalised by an Islamist cell in Brussels (a timely reminder that all extremists are, ultimately, of the same ilk).

From a narrative perspective, I found From Another World disappointing because its various plot threads never really coalesce, and seem to deliberately avoid closure. This notwithstanding, the novel still leaves an impact because of the powerful imagery at its heart, and because of the way in which it successfully harnesses Gothic tropes to highlight a topical and urgent subject. I feel that this is one of those books which some will find wanting, but which can just as easily become a timely “cult novel”.

3.5*

https://endsoftheword.blogspot.com/2021/09/from-another-world-by-evelina-santang...… (more)

Gothic and horror literature has long been derided as a mere purveyor of chills and thrills. While there is nothing intrinsically wrong with literature providing “cheap thrills”, the genre has, from inception, been more than that. More often than not, it has also reflected (and reflected upon) social and political concerns. One thinks, for example, of Godwin’s radical Caleb Williams, or the urban Gothic of the 19th Century with its portrayal of the misery of the lower classes. In our times, the proliferation of feminist Gothic is a continuation of this socially and politically aware tradition, as are other contemporary works, such as Stephen Graham Johnson’s The Only Good Indians, Ahmed Saadawi’s Frankenstein in Baghdad with its ghoulish portrayal of Iraq and the Peruvian horror of Red April by Santiago Roncagliolo.

From Another World, Ruth Clarke’s English translation of “Da Un Altro Mondo” by Sicilian author Evelina Santangelo fits well in this company. Even though it is not being marketed primarily as a “Gothic novel”, its central premise is chilling and eerie. Set alternately in Brussels and different parts of Italy, Santangelo’s novel imagines a Sicily haunted by apparitions of migrant children, who intermingle with local students, only to disappear, unaccounted for, whenever one tries to pin them down. I call them “apparitions”, but their nature remains vague and enigmatic. One could interpret them as ghosts of youths who failed to complete the deadly sea-journey towards Europe, or spectres of migrant children who died in accidents while working on the black market. Ultimately, however, these mysterious “visions” are possibly best understood as a metaphor – African migrants in Europe are, more often than not, stateless and without an official identity. Like spectral creatures, they are there-and-not-there. At the same time, the panic created by these “apparitions” reflects the often unfounded “fear of the other” which serves to fuel racist rhetoric.

Around this central idea, Santangelo weaves a number of related sub-plots – for instance, the story of immigrant Khaled who, after his younger brother dies in an accident in Brussels, starts an arduous voyage to return his remains home. Or the tale of Karolina, who searches for her missing son, unsure whether he’s joined a far-right group or, on the contrary, whether he’s been radicalised by an Islamist cell in Brussels (a timely reminder that all extremists are, ultimately, of the same ilk).

From a narrative perspective, I found From Another World disappointing because its various plot threads never really coalesce, and seem to deliberately avoid closure. This notwithstanding, the novel still leaves an impact because of the powerful imagery at its heart, and because of the way in which it successfully harnesses Gothic tropes to highlight a topical and urgent subject. I feel that this is one of those books which some will find wanting, but which can just as easily become a timely “cult novel”.

3.5*

https://endsoftheword.blogspot.com/2021/09/from-another-world-by-evelina-santang...… (more)