Chicos que Vuelven

Biographical Information
Mariana Enriquez is an Argentine journalist and novelist, known for her short novels: Bajar es lo peor (Espasa Calpe, 1995) and Cómo desaparecer completamente (Emecé, 2004), Los peligros de fumar en la cama (Emecé, 2009), Las cosas que perdimos en el fuego (Editorial Anagrama, 2016) and the novelette Chicos que vuelven (Eduvim, 2010). Engaging audiences with her political commentary that hides within her captivating horror tales, Enriquez's stories have also appeared in anthologies of Spain, Mexico, Chile, Bolivia and Germany.

Analysis
Chicos que Vuelvan is a short story based upon the historical disappearances of children and young adults in Argentina. Examining the social and mental consequences placed upon the disappeared and the families of the disappeared, Enriquez imagines the lives of kids that return after their kidnapping. However, in a speculative spin, the children have remained the same age, retaining their same physical state and even clothes they wore the day they disappeared.

Set in modern times, the book follows Mechi, an employee of Chacabuco park, where he is in charge of updating the archive of missing children. One day one of the disappeared girls reappears in the exact same conditions that they vanished in. By slightly twisting history, Chicos que Vuelvan highlights the absurd and seemingly unimaginable circumstances that many Argentinians experienced. Holding attention while also providing subjective criticism, the story is interesting and informational, providing a new perspective into the lives of the disappeared children and the humanities they went through.