Phrase by Angel Martin
In case the voices come back is the debut novel by the Spanish comedian, screenwriter, actor, musician and presenter Ángel Martín. The book was published by Planeta editorial in 2021, and has 6 editions to date. In just the first two weeks of its release, more than 100.000 copies disappeared from the shelves, making it one of the best-selling books of that year.
Martín's moving story garnered mostly positive reviews from his readers. The press was not far behind, also expressing its favorable impression of the work: “You feel recognized in many passages. A book that will surprise you for good”, said Carles Francino, de Window. The text has an audio version narrated by Martín.
About the author's context
The comedian Ángel Martín shared his first novel with the world, which also turns out to be an autobiographical text in the first person that narrates —through chronological, though not always ordered, paragraphs— the way he lost his mind in 2017. Reviews of his work have so far garnered a high average rating, and it has been described as: “…an essential tale that manages to break the schemes”.
Synopsis of In case the voices return
Modular
In case the voices come back describes the development of the author's psychosis and his rise to recovery. Little by little, during his stay at the clinic, Martín must sort out the voices in his head in order to lead a functional life again.
The book is divided into 16 chapters., through which the writer narrates his entire story. Begin with the event that triggered your transfer to the healing center. Then, in the next stage of the text, he focuses on the progress of his illness.
A means to help others
This book is an invitation to all those people who have gone through a situation similar to the one experienced by the protagonist —at least, that's the way it is for its author. The call consists of helping those affected by mental pathologies. In 2017, Ángel Martín "went crazy", but the plot goes beyond this fact. The story tells not only “what”, but also “how” Martín went through this process.
The break: assuming that one is not well
through the pages of In case the voices come back, the comedian refers to the sensations, thoughts and emotions that led him to understand that he was under a psychotic break —which is, in turn, is the premise of this story. Martín tries to encompass the events that occurred in a chained structure. However, the work is full of temporary jumps that anticipate the events.
The trigger: substance abuse
This fact highlights the non-linear reading of the text. El viaje interior de Ángel Martín seeks that readers feel identified with the problem of mental health, thanks to a direct and close language. Some passages in the play talk about drug abuse in a very innocuous way. However, according to the author, it was precisely the consumption of these substances that could have caused his psychotic break.
irrational episodes
The narrative escalates, and with each event the mental insanity of the protagonist increases. At some point, Ángel Martín gives a testimony of how he congratulates his girlfriend, Eva Fernández, through the social network Twitter, for the box office success of Wonder Woman:It is the best opening ever for a film directed by a woman. I told you I had the girl. I am very happy, my life. Congratulations on your work. I'm looking forward to seeing the next one. I love you".
Eva Fernández, who is actually a comedic actress and designer, was one of the first people to notice that the comedian was not well. The book also recounts the progress of Martín's mania through anecdotes about how his voices prevented her from communicating with his family. In his delusion, the perpetrator was the son of a god, traveled through space, and had the power to speak to dogs.
the sound of madness
The testimonial book raises the idea of "voices in the head", which most people have throughout their lives. It is easy to see a photograph of a well-known character and immediately imagine his voice, for example. But what happens when all these sounds and whispers and talks become a jumble of shadows overlapping each other?
Ángel Martín claims to have spoken with those disorderly transmissions about parallel worlds, conspiracies and other delicate and surreal themes. This event led him to end up locked up in a psychiatric clinic for 14 days. The objective was obvious: to be able to provide a solution to his pathology (locura (madness)).
The completion of the test
Finally, Ángel Martín talks about the experiences, consequences and lessons that the have suffered from the disorder, and how he came out of his 14 days admitted to the clinic. The author also tells what his life was like. This process brings the reader closer to how the presenter relied on drugs and alcohol to be moderately effective. However, the writer does not delve into this topic.
About the author, Àngel Martín
Angel Martin
Ángel Martín Gómez is a presenter, comedian, monologist, musician, and actor born in Barcelona, Spain, in 1977. He is well known for having participated in the program I know what you did, between 2006 and 2011. He also presented the scientific dissemination program Laika Orbit en The 2. Likewise, he was selected, together with Patricia Conde, to carry the transmission of WifiLeaks (#0 of Movistar+).
The comedian also received private piano lessons in Barcelona, and worked with his father and a friend in a band for the elderly. With the money from this work he paid his studies in the area of interpretation in an academy of the city of Barcelona, where he was always awarded roles of mysterious and sinister characters.
Ángel Martín has participated in several shorts over the years. The first of them was Pernambuco (2006) The film was shot in Ogíjares, Granada. In it, Martín gives life to a young man named Carlos, who, by chance, meets a young inhabitant of his town whom, curiously, he had never seen. The comedian has also dabbled in the theater, and, more recently, in the streaming.