The Sun on My Head

The Sun On My Head is a collection of thirteen short stories set in Rio’s largest favela, Rocinha. The collection gravitates around the childhoods and teenage years of boys who, in spite of having to deal with the anguish and difficulties inherent to their age, also struggle with the violence involved in growing up on the less favoured side of the ‘Broken City’.

In stories such as ‘Flash Mob’, a group of teenagers goes to the beach in the summer of 2015, a time marked by Rio’s military police presence, allegedly aimed at discouraging organized gang looting. In ‘Fr. Miguel Station, a group of friends find themselves staring down the barrels of militia semi-automatics, while in 'Russian Roulette’, the routine of some children in Bangu is sent into a spin by the appearance of a revolver.

This is a spellbinding debut about masculinity, corruption, guilt, poverty and resilience. Martins boasts superb mastery of both form and storytelling; this story collection is completely of our time yet promises to be profoundly timeless.