Short fiction set in Brazil: "Dazzling . . . fierce and wise . . . intelligent, observant, and laugh out loud funny." —Elizabeth Berg

You are about to read stories keenly true to time and place, yet so universal in theme that they are timeless. Superstitious townspeople, greedy men, a young girl looking for fame and love, a conflicted priest, and a reluctant husband live out their follies in the dusty villages and teeming cities of northeastern Brazil, home of rising Brazilian-American writer Luana Montiero.

A guitar-strumming young girl triumphs over her male opponents in a competitive ancient version of a poetry slam, only to find herself ensnared in a romantic trap. A luminous fish appears in an impoverished desert village and proceeds to perform questionable miracles on its desperate citizens. A handsome, sexually conflicted priest hears voices after drinking the water in a mining town. A city doctor finds that rural traditions get him into trouble of his own making. And a young Brazilian girl enamored of American television discovers that the United States is more complex than Saturday morning cartoons.

Little Star of Bela Lua announces the debut of a whimsical, wise writer whose lyrical prose and playful inventiveness illuminate a profound understanding of the human heart.