Rocinha vira livro pelos olhos do jornalista Edu Carvalho

Edu Carvalho, a journalist born and raised in Rocinha, launches tomorrow his first book ‘Na curve do S: Histórias da Rocinha’, by Editora Hoje, as part of the 2020 collection – essays on the pandemic. Through twelve stories, Edu tells a little about Rocinha with the lightness and refinement that are already hallmarks of his writing. 

“I feel that this book, which is the first, is a declaration of love for the place and the people. I only get to the places where I am and where I am because I am the son of this ground. It’s an environment that gives me a great variety of filters, ideas, layers and more layers of Brazil. We are in an environment that conditions more than 100 thousand people to be together. It is one of the ‘drums’ of the country, it is in the collective imagination. Even those who don’t live there, have heard about it at some point and make comments, have some desire to know what it’s really like”, explains the young journalist who has passed 

As the favela is part of our routine, we don’t always realize it, but this is a place rich in stories to tell. Edu tells a little about how he encourages these stories to jump out at him: 

“I do a weekly exercise (in normal times) of walking around the favela. Due to work and studies, I often spend more time outside than inside [Rocinha]. And to keep myself connected, I usually do this exercise that is still physical (laughs) going up and down, and also getting around on a motorcycle, bus and van”. 

He explains that these comings and goings are a way of always keeping an eye on everything and never normalizing things. “I can be in many different places, different cities, even on the same day (it has happened), but in the end, the port where I dock is here”, he adds.

“I tried to take the reader by the hand and lead him on a journey through Rocinha, showing the story through every corner, character, whether walking or riding a motorcycle”, he comments. Asked about the expectation of readers’ perceptions, he explains: “I think there will be a dynamic of double identification, either by those who live [here] and will read and also by those who do not, but by the way they received this story and/or feeling will be able to say ‘I’ve seen that’; ‘I imagined’ or also ‘wow, how I needed to know and know this’.

Edu won the 2019 Vladimir Herzog Award, worked as a member of the creative team for the program Conversa com Bial and the series Segunda Chamada and was a reporter for CNN Brasil. Even though he traveled a lot around the country and the city, he continues to live in Rocinha and has no plans to leave, for now. These wanderings provide him with a connection between life inside and outside Rocinha, which he considers a very positive point. “Being able to be that bridge honors and makes me very proud”, he concludes.

The book ‘On the S curve: Stories from Rocinha’ will be available from 9/4 in the digital version and the printed version on 9/17.