Oye

Mogollon’s vivacious debut provides a window into a modern Colombian American family, as told through one-sided telephone conversations between 18-year-old high school senior Luciana and her older sister Mari. Luciana is called on to be the adult in the family when Abue, her grandmother, is diagnosed with cancer. Luciana’s mother is blindly optimistic; her father is busy at their farm, and her sister is away at college. It is up to Luciana to be caregiver, transporter, referee, and chief listener while her eccentric grandmother deals with her illness. As Abue faces the end of her life, she gives advice and counsel that helps Luciana accept responsibility for herself. Abue reveals the truth about her troubled childhood and the motivation for the arc of her adult life, changing Luciana’s outlook as she considers her own struggles and path forward. Narrator Elena Rey captures the rebellious, mercurial nature of a teen under pressure, and her phrasing and timing are excellent, perfectly attuned to Mogollon’s one-sided storytelling technique. Even so, some listeners may tire of the barrage of profanity and relentless stream of abbreviations such as “lol” and “omg.”