Killing the Nerve

Auto-journalism, self-discovery, Catalan literature, English translation

Longlisted for the Premi Finestres 2023 · Voted Best Catalan Book of the Year by El País ** **A fearless and luminous debut about freedom, belonging, and the end of youth. ** **“It powerfully conveys the anxiety, chaos, and disillusionment of a world hurtling towards collapse.” — Julià Guillamon, La Vanguardia

“Very Joan Didion.” — Jordi Puntí, El Periódico

If like me you read, adored, and became obsessed with PERFECTION by Vicenzo Latronico, I think you’re going to need to read this book! - Night Owl Books

“A sharp, sceptical and deeply intelligent voice for a restless generation.” — El Cultural

For fans of Deborah Levy, Rachel Cusk and Leslie Jamison, Killing the Nerve captures the spirit of a generation that came of age in motion — global, self-aware, and searching for meaning in a world without anchors.

Not so much autofiction as autojournalism, Anna Pazos charts the end of youth and the beginning of adulthood for the global nomad generation. From the ‘Mediterranean mediocrity’ of bourgeois Barcelona to the chaos of Erasmus days in Thessaloniki, from her first steps in journalism in Jerusalem to a transatlantic voyage with an unsuitable lover — and finally to post-MeToo, pre-pandemic New York — this is a portrait of a woman always moving, always questioning.

When she is forced back to Barcelona in 2021, Pazos turns her gaze inward, confronting family, memory, and the fault lines of Catalan identity. What begins as an escape becomes a reckoning — with self, with place, and with what it truly means to grow up.

Amazing Reader Reviews: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Lyrical, incisive, and profoundly resonant — a mirror of a generation. For fans of Deborah Levy or Rachel Cusk, this novel will hit like a revelation.” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “A clear-eyed, engaging account of a generation navigating freedom, uncertainty, and the search for meaning.” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Anna Pazos has immense life experience — Killing the Nerve is a curious exploration of her journeys.” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “For fans of travel literature and conversational memoirs that capture modern relationships in all their messiness and beauty.”

Contributor: Charlotte Coombe (Translated by), Laura McGloughlin (Translated by)

Translator: Charlotte Coombe, Laura McGloughlin

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