On the Threshold

Strange situations, homicidal tendencies, and ill-fated love affairs animate the stories in Slovak writer Mitana’s bold English-language debut. In “A Hot Afternoon,” a magazine writer seeks refuge from a heat wave in a pub, where his lack of interest in beer angers the bartender and patrons, putting him in great danger. Fear spirals into cruelty in the foreboding “The Hawk,” as 14-year-old Peter takes measures to stop his uncle Ján from killing Ján’s wife. Many of the collection’s most successful entries blend absurdism and black humor. For instance, “Mitigating Circumstances” finds a man caught between conflicting loyalties when his friend Johan and Johan’s wife, Agatha, each confide in him their plans to kill the other. Elsewhere, Mitana embraces the surreal and mystic, as in the metafictional “The Engagement,” which sees the narrator, a writer, rent an apartment in Bratislava where his landlady imposes strict rules against drinking and hosting women. His plans unravel when a woman visits, leading to their humorous attempts to have sex without being detected by the landlady or his spying neighbors. Mitana fearlessly explores death, obsession, and sexual desire, making the most of mundane scenarios to reveal the complexities of human nature. It’s a worthy introduction to a great talent. (Nov.)