Author(s): Marta Orriols

Novel | Spain | Translated fiction | Fiction Reductions

An immersive moving novel about complex grief: a woman attempts to rebuild her life after her boyfriend leaves her for another women then dies hours later.

Navigating the unsettled nature of her grief, obsessing over Mauro's infidelity and pursuing fraught affairs with a new colleague and a charismatic stranger, she struggles to make sense of her world anew.

Told in immersive, lucid prose, Learning to Talk to Plants is a moving and tender exploration of the emotional kaleidoscope of grief, and of the awkward, unpredictable process of rebuilding a shattered life.

Review: "Marta Orriols debuts with a brilliant novel" -- Time Out

"Marta Orriols is an exceptional writer" -- El Periodico

"Marta Orriols has the ability to put into words the brevity and the unforeseen circumstances of everyday life" -- El Pais

"A beautifully written novel about complex grief and a woman's attempt to rebuild her life after the sudden death of her long-time partner... a small but rich and profound story, and I would strongly recommend it for anyone who loves beautiful writing and a very introspective, revealing story." --Lily Bartels of The Open Door Bookstore on Northeast Public Radio

Author Biography: Marta Orriols is a Spanish writer living in Barcelona. She studied History of Art at university and later Screenwriting at the Bande a Part Film School in Barcelona and Creative Writing at the Escuela de Escritura del Ateneu Barcelones. Her second novel, Learning to Talk to Plants, won the Omnium Cultural Prize for the best Catalan novel.