Dengue Boy, Michel Nieva
In the year 2272, the Patagonian Archipelagos are one of the only places still habitable for humans on the climate ravaged earth. Despite the dwindling global population, a booming viroeconomy profits from the planning of global pandemics and dominates the free market. Meanwhile, ecosystems are commodified as developers have terraformed the coolest parts of the planet to provide luxury holidays for wealthy tourists. Into this dystopia steps Dengue Boy, a humanoid mosquito child of unknown origins who is shunned and othered by everyone he meets, even his own mother. As chaos reigns and the world collapses, Dengue Boy travels the archipelagos trying to find out where he came from.
Dengue Boy is without a doubt the weirdest book I have ever read. A rough amalgamation of cyberpunk, body horror and surrealism, it reads like a fever dream that will leave you thinking, ‘what did I just read?’ However, despite its outlandishness, Nieva depicts an unnervingly tangible future that confronts us with the interconnected nature of colonialism, capitalism and climate change. Dengue Boy is pure chaos in the best way. It’s unsettling, and sometimes downright disturbing, but there are also moments of real tenderness and vulnerability, at which Nieva excels. Rahul Bery’s translation must also be praised here, as it’s no small feat to capture a narrative voice that ranges from anarchic to lyrical.
Michael Nieva is the future of speculative fiction. Dengue Boy is genre bending, rule breaking and wholly unpredictable. At the same time, it’s a book with a serious message about the future of humanity on earth and the way we treat non-human lives. It’s no accident that Dengue Boy, despite not being human, is ultimately the most humane character. Dengue Boy is a testament to how well-crafted and innovative genre fiction is as well as how important it is to read it.
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