3.7 Stars

This book has ten stories dealing with varying themes. 

Aida – 3.5 Stars 

Salma’s twin, Aida, is missing. The girls are sixteen and live in a safe small town with their parents. What happened to Aida? Can they find out? The story comes from Salma’s first-person POV, revealing more about their family and a little about the disappearance. 

Fausto – 3.5 Stars 

Paz is in love with Fausto. They plan to get married, but Fausto wants to become rich first. Being a security guard is hardly a career, and easy money is more than welcome. But what happens when things don’t go as planned. Narrated by Paz in the first-person, this is a story of love, dreams, morals, decisions, and choices. 

The Book of Saints – 4.5 Stars 

The story comes in a dual first-person POV of an American 40+ man and a 25+ Colombian girl. What starts as a regular story ends up becoming so much more. Very well done. 

Campoamor – 4 Stars 

Vladimir is a writer, or so he calls himself. He is drifting between three houses and two girlfriends, doing nothing else. However, things may change. Why? How? What will happen? The story comes in the first-person POV and reads as boring as the guy is. 

Gaupa – 4 Stars 

Indiana is one of the thousands of Colombian immigrants in New York working in a factory. Narrated in the first-person, the story takes us through her life, past, present, hopes, dreams, and the love of her life, Edgar. 

La Ruta – 4 Stars 

Mago is a taxi driver living with his dominant girlfriend Florencia. One day, he gets a young woman as a passenger, and it changes his life. Told in the first-person POV of Mago, the story ends with a cliffhanger of sorts, much like his situation. 

Ramiro – 4 Stars 

Narrated by a teenage girl, Chana, the story focuses on her life and Ramino’s. How are they connected, and what happens next? The ending is quite heartbreaking in this one. 

The Bones of Cristóbal Colón – 3.5 Stars 

Anita gets a call that grave robbers have stolen most of her brother’s bones. It’s quite common in the city, though she hopes his bones will be safe. Later that day, she gets a call from her lover, who left her for another woman. Told in the first-person POV, this is a story with no real starting and ending, just like the narrator's life- waiting for something to happen. 

Libélula – 4 Stars 

Told in the second-person narration, it’s the story of a woman who becomes a house help to another immigrant like her but money. The story is told in a matter-of-fact tone, though it has elements of deeper contemplation about bonds, life, and survival. 

Aguacero – 4 Stars 

A chance meeting between the narrator, a 25-year-old girl with trauma, and Juan, a 50-year-old man visiting the city to disappear for a while. They develop a unique bond that helps them both. 

To summarize, The Faraway World is a collection of character-oriented short stories that examine human flaws, societal conditions, and interpersonal relationships. All of them have flawed and realistic characters who manage to make an impression despite everything.