Description
Last Round
Book Summary
On a night of torrential rain in the Swiss mountains, the Helvezia tavern prepares to close its doors forever. Under its roof, the final patrons gather to share stories, memories, and glasses full, in a magical and melancholic journey where the living and the dead intertwine. Arno Camenisch weaves a short but intense novel, full of noise and silences, that captures the soul of a place and those who inhabit it. A work that celebrates the resilience of memory and the strength of community in the face of abandonment.
What is it about?
The novel takes place during a single stormy night at the Helvezia tavern, an alpine establishment about to shut down for good. As the rain falls with unusual force, the customers who arrive at the venue become the protagonists of a unique evening. Among them, the living and the dead, real people and figures of memory mingle, all united by the need to tell their stories, to quench their thirst, and to leave a record of their passage through the world. The narrative moves like a torrent of voices, anecdotes, and emotions, caught between the melancholy of what is being lost and the joy of what still endures. The tavern is transformed into a symbolic refuge where time stands still and words, like wine, flow without rest.
Main themes
- The closure and disappearance of traditional community spaces.
- Collective memory and the power of shared stories.
- The coexistence of life and death in popular imagination.
- The resilience of the community in the face of abandonment and the passage of time.
- Melancholy and joy as two sides of the same human experience.
Who is it recommended for?
This work is aimed at readers looking for a short but dense narrative with an immersive atmosphere and a singular literary style. It is ideal for those who enjoy stories that explore rural life, meeting places, and orality as a form of resistance. It is also for those interested in contemporary Swiss literature and in stories that combine realism, lyricism, and a touch of magical realism.
What this book offers
- An immersive reading experience that captures the unique atmosphere of a stormy night in the Alps.
- A deep reflection on the value of gathering places and the oral transmission of memory.
- Poetic and precise prose that manages to condense complex emotions into just 96 pages.
- An original look at alpine culture and fading traditions.
- A story that, despite its brevity, leaves a lasting impression on the reader.
Technical specifications
- Author: Arno Camenisch
- Publisher: Xordica
- Language: Spanish
- Subject: Modern and contemporary fiction
- Collection: Carrachinas
- Binding: Paperback
- Publication date: October 2014
- Number of pages: 96
- Weight: 150 g
Editorial review
Last Round is a novel that demonstrates how brevity can be synonymous with intensity. Arno Camenisch builds a microcosm around a tavern on the verge of disappearing, and he does so with a narrative voice that oscillates between the lyrical and the colloquial, the real and the fantastic. The work will be of particular interest to those who value atmospheric literature, where landscape and language merge to create a unique experience. Its reading is recommended for those looking for an original proposal, far from major publishing circuits, that invites one to dwell on small details and stories that often go unnoticed.