The Story of My Teeth

A novel about the creative process, the value of art and the cult of literary celebrity that follows one man with a mouth full of bad teeth and a life full of stories.

Gustavo 'Turnpike' Sanchez is a man with a mission: he is planning to replace every last one of his unsightly teeth. He has a few skills that might help him on his way: he can imitate Janis Joplin after two rums, he can interpret Chinese fortune cookies, he can stand an egg upright on a table, and he can float on his back. And, of course, he is the world's best auction caller ? although other people might not realise this, because he is, by nature, very discreet.

Studying auctioneering under Grandmaster Oklahoma and the famous country singer Leroy Van Dyke, Highway travels the world, amassing his collection of 'Collectibles' and perfecting his own specialty: the allegoric auction. In his quest for a perfect set of pearly whites, he finds unusual ways to raise the funds, culminating in the sale of the jewels of his collection: the teeth of the 'notorious infamous' - Plato, Petrarch, Chesterton, Virginia Woolf et al.

Written with elegance, wit and exhilarating boldness, Valeria Luiselli takes us on an idiosyncratic and hugely enjoyable journey that offers an insightful meditation on value, worth and creation, and the points at which they overlap.

About the Author

VALERIA LUISELLI was born in Mexico City in 1983 and is currently studying for a PhD at Columbia University. Her work has been published in the New York Times, McSweeney's and Dazed & Confused, and has been translated into many languages. Her debut novel was Faces in the Crowd and she is also the author of a collection of essays, Sidewalks.