Description
Welcome to Upstart & Crow’s In Translation Book Club, a celebration of global literature and storytelling across languages and borders! This free, bi-monthly event in our studio space introduces readers to powerful voices writing in languages other than English, amplifying fresh perspectives, underheard narratives and bold ideas.
On Wednesday, April 29 at 6:00pm, we’ll be discussing Now I Surrender, by Álvaro Enrigue, translated by Natasha Wimmer.
In 1886, famed Apache leader Geronimo surrendered to the U.S. army after decades of resistance across the borderlands of Mexico and the United States. Álvaro Enrigue’s newly translated novel takes its title from his words: “Once I moved about like the wind. Now I surrender to you and that is all.”
Beginning with the kidnapping of a Mexican woman, the novel follows the ragtag expedition sent to retrieve her — a soldier, a sharpshooting woman known as “the Nun,” and two devilishly charismatic Yaqui twins. Part anti-imperialist epic and part alt-western, Now I Surrender takes apart and reassembles the mythology of the “American” borderlands to challenge the stories we think we know about conquest and resistance. The result is a gripping, genre-bending meditation on freedom, myth, and the contested histories of the desert frontier. Named a most anticipated book of 2026 by The New York Times, The Washington Post and LitHub.
Bring yourself and an open mind to discuss the book! You do not need to have purchased the book from us to attend, but we’ll be offering a 10% discount on the title if you do. You can do so by selecting between two ticket options here.
More about Upstart & Crow:
Upstart & Crow is a not-for-profit creative studio and literary incubator that champions writers, readers and stories, and the role they play in shaping our lives. We develop original programs, support artists and revel in creative projects focused on Literature In Translation / Climate Solutions / Poetry / Civic Dialogue / Community & Skills Building … all with the aim of elevating the role of literature and storytelling in our lives. Find us on Granville Island, Gibsons and online at upstartandcrow.com.
Accessibility:
The main studio of our shop is accessible for folks with mobility aids. There is a washroom on the main floor available for attendees.
Questions: hello[at]upstartandcrow.com.
Now I Surrender
“As with Enrigue’s earlier books, he’s determined to upset narrative convention, and Wimmer, his longtime translator, handles his veering skillfully. Enrigue’s approach isn’t so much to lament the end of Apachería so much as to admire the steeliness of a tribe that survived centuries-long attempts to subdue it. A curious but effective treatment of an underappreciated effort to resist imperialism.”—Kirkus
