One of Spain's most translated contemporary writers will participate in several lectures and discuss his latest books in the two cities at the end of the month.
Javier Cercas is a celebrated Spanish novelist, short-story writer, and essayist. His best-known work, Soldados de Salamina (2001), has sold more than 500,000 in Spain, has been published in more than fifteen languages, and was made into a feature film.
His latest novel, Anatomía de un instante (The Anatomy of a Moment), is a chilling reconstruction of the attempted coup in the Spanish Parliament on 23 February 1981, when army insurgents sought to bring fascism back to democratic Spain.
Cercas taught Spanish at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, an currently teaches Spanish Literature at the University of Girona, in Spain.
The author will be in New York tri state area, to participate in several lectures and to discuss his latest books:
- Montclair University, Nov 26th, 27th & 29th at various times
- Stony Brook: Nov 28th at 12:30 p.m.
- Columbia University: Nov 28th at 5 p.m.
- Instituto Cervantes: Nov. 30th at 6 p.m.
For more information on the New York events, click here.
Then on Tuesday, December 4th at 6 p.m., Cercas will be speaking at the Instituto Cervantes Chicago. (Instituto Cervantes Auditorium, 31 W. Ohio St. Chicago, IL 60654) in an free and open to the public event. To RSVP, click here.
For his event in Chicago, Cercas will discuss various themes that arise in his work: the influence of the past on the present; the reflection the past casts on literature. For the writer, the past is a dimension of the present. Cercas will explore Spain's relationship with its recent past (the transition to democracy after Franco's dictatorship) and reflect on the reasons for the success of Soldados de Salamina, and the influence it has had on his career path.
Cercas will present translations of Anatomía de un instante and La velocidad de la luz (The Speed of Light.)
For more information on the Chicago event, call 312-335-1996; e-mail: chicago@cervantes1.org, or click here.
