In his position at the local processing plant, he has seen men and women – or “heads” as they tend to refer to them – slaughtered quite literally by the truckload. Main character Marcos has his doubts about this new way of life, doubts which gnaw at him from the outset. In their place, human beings are bred as livestock instead, with the efficient systems of the old world repurposed with chilling ease. That’s the tagline for Tender is the Flesh, and serves as the jumping off point for an exploration of a nightmarish version of our world, one in which animals have been infected with a deadly virus, forcing a mass culling. A perfect conclusion for the month of October, and a must read for any season.If everyone was eating human meat, would you? On a scale of one to ten I would rate the book a 7.5 for its grotesquely thought-provoking plot line, as well as it’s excellent translation from Spanish to English. A question of personal morals fighting our animalistic tendency to survive at all costs - a deeply thrilling dystopia that will leave your skin crawling to the very last word. With calamity, both of fiction and reality, how can we aim to keep the humane in human?Īs I read this book I found to be particularly controversial, depicting a world not so unimaginable. In this beautifully written and translated novel, be prepared for the existentialism that comes with pondering the motives of society and where we truly could be headed. This chilling, disgusting novel will have you on the edge of your seat, with a shocking ending you’ll never see coming. Stuck in his occupation, suffering the grief of losing a child, and the burden of his father, the last thing Marcos needs is “product.” However, after inheriting a human woman, Marcos starts to see the flaws in society, and in himself.Īs he switches from ruthless, aloof antagonist, to pitied protagonist you are constantly kept speculating.
And of course, the inevitable question, are you the predator or prey of society? As you read, you get a deeply graphic perspective, and experience the discomfort that comes with a compelling ethical debate. Tender is the Flesh, by Augustina Bazterrica is a chilling, propulsive novel following the perspective of Marcos as he battles the moral constraints of a society where humans are bred and eaten like animals.Īfter a virus (one that Marcos suspects the government orchestrated) infects all animals and makes them inedible, humans slowly transition to another source of meat.
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