Son of Jesus

Published in 1992, Filho de Jesus (Jesus' Son) is a collection of short stories by American writer Denis Johnson. The work is composed of eleven interconnected stories, narrated by an unnamed protagonist, a young addict who wanders through a marginalized world populated by equally lost and maladjusted characters. The title of the book refers to a Lou Reed song, underlining the tone of the narrative.

Stories such as Carro de Emergência and Trabalho Dois stand out for the way they capture the strangeness of human existence and the way addiction distorts the perception of reality.

Brutality, despair, tenderness and spirituality, for a disturbing and moving reading experience.

The influence of writers such as Raymond Carver and Jack Kerouac is notable in Johnson's writing, but the author develops a voice of his own, characterized by the fusion of dirty realism and transcendence.

Filho de Jesus is a meditation on human fragility, narrated with an intensity that resonates far beyond its pages. The work became a modern classic of American literature, influencing numerous writers and being adapted for the screen in 1999.