This collection of twenty-six stories is “a fine introduction to Latin American literature” ( The Washington Post Book World ). This splendid collection of stories by twenty-six Latin American authors features the new voices and celebrated masters of one of the world's foremost literatures. Explore the gothic sexual ambiguities of Carlos Fuentes’ “The Doll Queen,” the psychological compression of Clarice Lispector’s “Love,” or the baroque pyrotechnics of Machado de Assis and Adolfo Bioy Casares. Discover the parodically hard-boiled detective fiction of Ana Lydia Vega and some decidedly soft-boiled criminals in Rubem Fonesca’s “Lonelyhearts.” From erotic comedies by Isabel Allende and Jorge Amado to the playful labyrinths of Guillermo Cabrera Infante’s London streets or Armonia Somers’ roomful of clocks, A Hammock Beneath the Mangoes reveals the virtuosity of Latin American literature at its finest, and provides an illuminating journey into dreamlike and unexpected worlds.