Super Extra Grande (Cuban Science Fiction)

by Yoss

Other authorsDavid Frye (Translator)
Paperback, 2016

Status

Available

Publication

Restless Books (2016), 156 pages

Description

Set in a distant future, after the invention of faster-than-light space travel has propelled a still-immature mankind into the far corners of the Milky Way, the novel features creatures of immense variety--amoebas that cover entire worlds, sensual females that feed on substances from their males' reproductive systems, talking reptiles, and other creations drawn from the classics of Cuban and international science fiction--all of which serve as colleagues, fellow adventurers, sex partners, teachers, or members of the military high command in the Galactic Community governing this part of the universe. Our protagonist, Jan Amos Sangan Dongo, has a special role in this otherworldly menagerie: He is a veterinarian who specializes in treating enormous animals across the galaxy. When a colonial conflict threatens the fragile peace between the Galaxy's seven intelligent species, Dr. Sangan must embark on a daring mission to enter a gigantic creature and find two swallowed ambassadors--who also happen to be his competing love interests --… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member lisapeet
Weird, fun, cheerfully but also annoyingly adolescent. Interesting language and science play, with a plot out of a 16-year-old's comic-book script. This is a case where brevity is a major asset—I'm not sure I'd have stuck with a longer book.
LibraryThing member jonfaith
Quick and fun, Super Extra Grande details an adventure of a veterinary biologist in the space age future, one who specializes in truly mammoth megafauna. Conversing in Spanglish, humans are but one of seven "intelligent " species who have achieved interstellar travel without the concurrent advances
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in culture or ethics. Just imagine the hijinks!

Satirical and hilarious, the novel is a treatise on chauvinism and orthodoxy . Intransigence and jingoism rule the day until our eight foot tall half Cuban/ half Japanese protagonist attempts to reconcile his prejudices, his ambitions and his gaping love for the natural manifestations of the universe. Recommended.
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LibraryThing member Bodagirl
This ended up reading like a lot of self-published LitRPG. The world building was pretty cool (alien creatures and Spanglish), but the characters were two-dimensional and unlikeable, especially the "hero." Holy machismo, batman: hulky he-man physique, with his heart in the right place, and uttering
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such lines as "So the jealous sorts can run their mouths off about my supposed misogyny... [before going into sexist descriptions of his two female assistants]" and the one that almost made me hurl the book across the room, "Call me machista and closed-minded, and maybe I am, but what good is a woman without her most important opening [her vagina]?"

The only reason I didn't DNF is because I needed it to finish the 2018 Book Riot Read Harder Challenge
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LibraryThing member quondame
It's a romp with a raunchy male centric attitude, though actual sex is absent. A mixture of Spanish and English as Spanglish in the dialog left me clueless to any subtleties.

Awards

Philip K. Dick Award (Nominee — 2016)
Best Translated Book Award (Longlist — 2017)
Premio UPC (Winner — 2010)

Language

Original language

English

Barcode

9190

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