Bahia Blues focuses on a small group of individuals in a Brazilian village community, who daily congregate round the Square where they share their hardship and their dreams. Former carnival queen, Maria Aparecida acts as the all-seeing matriarchal figure; Sergio sells his wares to feed his family; convent worker Ivona obsesses over daytime soap operas on TV; and teenage brothers Ze and Manuel keep smiling despite having contracted AIDS. Despite the impoverished conditions, they all hold together, but with the arrival of the mysterious stranger, Gringa, a restless spirit blows through the neighbourhood compelling people to leave in search of a better life elsewhere.

The first chapter reads like a series of monologues as we travel within the mind of each character. It brings to the surface their hopes, their dreams, their fears, their jealousies. The lives of certain characters are followed closely as they migrate to cities such as Sao Paolo and Rio De Janeiro, dazzled by urban glamour but quickly discovering those illusions come with a price as actions, born of desperation, lead to tragic but almost inevitable consequences. As the bigger urban world consumes lives, it also strengthens the bonds amongst the villagers themselves.

By weaving a tale continually through an interconnected group of individuals, Yasmina Traboulsi's novella manages to put wider social and economicissues of modern Brazil under the microscope with poignant ease. The brutality, poor health and living conditions are clearly highlighted, each situation giving birth to the other so that the accumulative effect is dangerously destructive. Within all the urban noise, the random crime, the murderous justice of the street which turns Sergio from street seller to drug dealer, there is also a kernel of hope that thrives, offering a joyful celebration of survival in uncaring conditions - aged shoeshiner Vava is always grateful to safely see his wife daily - or the rewarding fulfillment of dreams as Ivone's naivety also becomes her greatest talisman and strength.

In some ways, Bahia Blues bears comparison to the kaleidoscopic panoramas of Latin American cinemas in films such as Amores Perros and City of God, building a complete picture from diverse personal stories. Yasmina Traboulsi has given her writing a breezy spirit which is weighted with anger and conscience. It's awash with light and shade, powerfully evocative and energetically inspired. It marks the emergence of a passionate new writer.