Julio Cortazar

A unique anthology of eight Latin American novellas by major modern writers that enables the reader to really experience the work of each writer. A who's who of Latin American literature: Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Ana Lydia Vega, G. Cabrera Infante, Alvaro Mutis, Alejo Carpentier, Julio Cortazar, Joao Guimaraes Rosa, and Felisberto Hernandez.

Though there are a number of anthologies of Latin American literature which contain numerous short selections and include many writers, the brevity of the selections doesn't allow the reader to savor, feel, or comprehend the writer's style and work. What is needed is a selective group of examples of short fiction by major Latin American writers which will introduce the reader to works of sufficient length so that it's possible to really experience each writer. The novellas included are distinctive and demonstrate the richness of contemporary Latin American literature and offer a variety of style, theme, tone, and subject. Further, the writers included have all been critically praised and widely recognized. The novella by Joao Guimaraes Rosa is published here for the first time in English. There are short biographies of the eight authors included at the end of the book.

"A superb anthology! For readers who know nothing about Latin American fiction and for readers who think they know everything, these eight novellas will be a treat". Ariel Dorfman Duke University

"A wonderful introduction to some of the best work of the

Body of Writing focuses on the traces that an author's "body" leaves on a work of fiction. Drawing on the work of six important Spanish American writers of the twentieth century, Rene Prieto examines narratives that reflect -- in differing yet ultimately complementary ways -- the imprint of the author's body, thereby disclosing insights about power, aggression, transgression, and eroticism.

Healthy, invalid, lustful, and confined bodies -- as portrayed by Julio Cortazar, Guillermo Cabrera Infante, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Severo Sarduy, Rosario Castellanos, and Tununa Mercado -- become evidence for Roland Barthes's contention that works of fiction are "anagrams of the body". Claiming that an author's intentions can be uncovered by analyzing "the topography of a text", Prieto pays particular attention not to the actions or plots of these writers' fiction but rather to their settings and characterizations. In the belief that bodily traces left on the page reveal the motivating force behind a writer's creative act, he explores such fictional themes as camouflage, deterioration, defilement, entrapment, and subordination. Along the way, Prieto reaches unexpected conclusions regarding topics that include the relationship of the female body to power, male and female transgressive impulses, and the connection between aggression, the idealization of women, and anal eroticism in men.

This study of how authors' longings and fears become embodied in literature will interest students and scholars of literary and psychoanalytic criticism, gender studies, and twentieth-century and Latin American literature.

It is commonly assumed that the United States and Latin America, culturally so different, move artistically to very different rhythms. Also common is the assumption that, with rare exception, the literary figures on one side of the global North/ South divide have had little interest in the work of their counterparts. With Mutual Impressions Ilan Stavans dispels these notions by showing how solid the bridges between writers and across borders have been -- at least since the early days of this century -- and how crucial they are likely to become as we enter the next millennium.

Divided into symmetrical halves -- South reading North and North reading South -- the book presents essays by leading novelists, poets, and other writers that focus on the work of another literary figure from across the divide. Borges, for example, finds in Hawthorne the perfect precursor to his own interest in allegories; Katherine Anne Porter examines Jose Joaquin Fernandez de Lizardi as a rascal whose picaresque views of life in The Itching Parrot served to launch the Latin American novel; Cortazar's study of the plots and style of Poe show an affinity that left an indelible mark on the Argentine's short fiction; Susan Sontag views Machado de Assis as the ultimate mirror, a proto-postmodernist.

With other essays by Thomas Pynchon, William H. Gass, John Updike, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Alejo Carpentier, John Barth, Robert Coover, Pedro Henriquez Urena, Grace Paley, Juan Carlos Onetti, and Mark Strand, among others, Mutual Impressions offers a remarkable view of the connections that comprise a literary tradition of the Americas. It is a book that will surprise and enliven its readers as it informs and awakensin them a sense of wonder.

Jean Franco's work as a path-breaking theorist, cultural critic, & scholar has helped to define Latin American studies over the last three decades. In the process, Franco has played a crucial role in developing cultural studies in both the English- & Spanish-speaking worlds. Critical Passions is the first volume to gather a wide-ranging selection of Franco's influential essays. A key participant in the major debates in Latin American studies-beginning with the "boom" period of the 1960s & continuing through debates on ideology & discourse, Marxism, mass culture, & postmodernism-Franco is recognized for her feminist critique of Latin American writing. While her principal books are all readily available, Franco's several dozen articles are dispersed in a variety of periodicals in Latin America, Europe, & the United States. Although many of these essays are considered pioneering & classic, they have never before been collected in a single work. In this volume, Mary Louise Pratt & Kathleen Newman have organized the essays into four interrelated sections: feminism & the critique of authoritarianism, mass & popular culture, Latin American literature from the "boom" onward, & the cultural history of Mexico. As a group, these writings demonstrate Franco's ability to reflect on & judge with equal seriousness all spheres of expression, whether subway graffiti, a fashion manual, or an avant-garde haiku. A bona fide fan of popular & mass media, Franco never allows her critiques to dissolve into the puritanical or reductive; instead, she finds ways to present & debate complex theoretical questions in direct & accessible language. This volume will draw an extensive readership in Latin American, cultural, & women's studies.

"On one level, this is a brilliant scholarly answer to the bedeviling question asked by non-Latin Americanists, 'What is Latin American literature like?' On another level, it coordinates and clarifies, for specialists, the complex of current issues that are often confusing and even discouraging because they are incompletely understood."--John S. Brushwood, Roberts Professor Emeritus of Latin American Literature, University of KansasLiterature in Latin America has long been a vehicle for debates over the interpretation of social history, cultural identity, and artistic independence. Indeed, Latin American literature has gained international respect for its ability to present social criticism through works of imaginative creation.In this comprehensive, up-to-the-minute survey of research and opinion by leading Latin American cultural and literary critics, Naomi Lindstrom examines five concepts that are currently the focus of intense debate among Latin American writers and thinkers. Writing in simple, clear terms for both general and specialist readers of Latin American literature, she explores the concepts of autonomy and dependency, postmodernism, literary intellectuals and the mass media, testimonial literature, and gender issues, including gay and lesbian themes. Excerpts (in English) from relevant literary works illustrate each concept, while Lindstrom also traces its passage from the social sciences to literature.

This vast three-volume Encyclopedia offers more than 4000 entries on all aspects of the dynamic and exciting contemporary cultures of Latin America and the Caribbean. Its coverage is unparalleled with more than 40 regions discussed and a time-span of 1920 to the present day. "Culture" is broadly defined to include food, sport, religion, television, transport, alongside architecture, dance, film, literature, music and sculpture. The international team of contributors include many who are based in Latin America and the Caribbean making this the most essential, authoritative and authentic Encyclopedia for anyone studying Latin American and Caribbean studies.Key features include:* over 4000 entries ranging from extensive overview entries which provide context for general issues to shorter, factual or biographical pieces* articles followed by bibliographic references which offer a starting point for further research* extensive cross-referencing and thematic and regional contents lists direct users to relevant articles and help map a route through the entries* a comprehensive index provides further guidance.