A Thousand Forests in One Acorn
An Anthology of Spanish-Language Fiction
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
A Thousand Forests in One Acorn: An Anthology of Spanish-Language Fiction brings together twenty-eight of the most important Spanish-language writers of the twentieth century—several of which will be familiar to English-language readers, like Carlos Fuentes, Javier Marías, and Mario Vargas Llosa, and many who will be new revelations, such as Aurora Venturini, Sergio Pitol, and Elvio Gandolfo—and provides them with a chance to discuss their careers and explain the aesthetic influences behind the pieces they chose to include in this volume. Unlike other anthologies, the stories and excerpts collected here were selected by the authors themselves and represent the "high point" of their writing career.
Valerie Miles—translator, editor, and co-founder of Granta en español—not only curated perhaps the greatest cross-section of contemporary Spanish-language literature to be anthologized, but also brings to this collection original interviews with every author, along with biographic prefaces before each, in order to best introduce the reader to the author's entire oeuvre and his or her literary impact.
Breathtaking in scope and historical detail, this anthology will no doubt become a fixture in personal literary collections, as well as a go-to resource for classrooms and libraries alike.
Valerie Miles is a publisher, writer, translator, and the co-founder of Granta en español. She is also the co-director of The New York Review of Books in its Spanish translation and, in 2013, was voted one of the "Most Influential Professionals in Publishing" by the Buenos Aires Book Fair.
Contributors:
Rafael Chirbes
Edgardo Cozarinsky
Jose de la Colina
Cristina Fernandez Cubas
Alfredo Bryce Echenique
Jorge Edwards
Abilio Estevez
Rafael Sanchez Ferlosio
Carlos Fuentes
Elvio Gandolfo
Juan Goytisolo
Javier Marias
Juan Marse
Ana Maria Matute
Eduardo Mendoza
Jose Maria Merino
Antonio Munoz Molina
Horacio Castellanos Moya
Ricardo Piglia
Ramiro Pinilla
Sergio Pitol
Evelio Rosero
Alberto Ruy Sanchez
Esther Tusquets
Hebe Uhart
Mario Vargas Llosa
Aurora Venturini
Enrique Vila-Matas
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Miles compiles an impressive anthology of Spanish-language authors' self-submissions. The result, titled after an Emerson quote, is less of a definitive canon than an attempt to "root out the acorn, the driving obsession of a writer." Nevertheless, the 28 participating fiction writers represent some of the best of their respective literatures: including Carlos Fuentes (Mexican), Aurora Venturini (Argentinian), Mario Vargas Llosa (Peruvian), and Ramiro Pinilla (Spanish), among many others. Each section consists of a short biography (conveniently marked off by inked page edges), an interview, a selection of the author's choosing, and finally a bibliography of works and awards. Almost all of the selections are literary works of rare, remarkable quality, but the real pleasure is reading them in the context of the interviews. Here, authors explain their submission choice (Alberto Ruy S nchez calls it "the pain of choosing"); they recount influences (Faulkner makes frequent appearances, as do family members says Fuentes, "rite for your grandmothers wherever they are"); and they discuss everything from writing techniques to fiction's "obligation" to politics. Ordered chronologically by authors' dates of birth, the collection begins with the rich works of the most mature authors, and ends slightly less impressively with younger authors who, though worthwhile, may have yet to write their best pages. With its myriad themes, including class conflict (Esther Tusquets), disillusionment with utopian ideals (Juan Mars ), and instability of identity (Antonio Mu oz Molina), the collection amply rewards both the casual reader and the scholar seeking insight into authors' thought processes.
