The Head of the Saint

Description

Dreams of love come true when they're told to the right person... After walking for days across the harsh Brazilian landscape only to be rejected by his last living relative, Samuel finds his options for survival are dwindling fast - until he comes to the hollow head of a statue, perfect for a boy to crawl into and hide... Whilst sheltering, Samuel realises that he can hear the villagers' whispered prayers to Saint Anthony - confessing lost loves, hopes and fears - and he begins to wonder if he ought to help them out a little. When Samuel's advice hits the mark he becomes famous, and people flock to the town to hear about their future loves. But with all the fame comes some problems, and soon Samuel has more than just the lovelorn to deal with. A completely charming and magically told Brazilian tale, sure to capture your heart.

Socorro AcioliSocorro was born in Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil. She is a journalist, has a master's degree in Brazilian literature and a PhD in Literary Studies. She started her writing career in 2001 and since then has published books of various genres, including children's short stories and YA novels. In 2006, she was selected to take part in a workshop conducted by the Nobel Prize Winner Gabriel Garcia Marquez. The author was selected by Garcia Marquez himself based on the synopsis for THE HEAD OF THE SAINT. In 2007, she was a visiting researcher at a university in Germany, and she has also lectured in several other countries such as Portugal, Bolivia and Cape Verde. Socorro is also a translator, essayist and literary theory teacher, and you can follow her at www.socorroacioli.wordpress.com or on Twitter: @AcioliSocorroDaniel Hahn [Translator]Daniel is a British writer, editor and translator. He is the author of a number of works of non-fiction, including the history book THE TOWER MENAGERIE, and one of the editors of THE ULTIMATE BOOK GUIDE, a series of reading guides for children and teenagers, the first volume of which won the Blue Peter Book Award. His translation of THE BOOK OF CHAMELEONS by Jose Eduardo Agualusa won the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize in 2007. A former chair of the Translators Association, he is currently national programme director of the British Centre for Literary Translation, and a trustee of the free expression charity English PEN. Follow Daniel on Twitter: @danielhahn02