The most recent addition to the complete review is my review of Tomás González's In the Beginning was the Sea, just out in the UK from Pushkin Press, and due in the US early next year.
This is González's first novel -- published in 1983 ! -- but despite his impressive reputation (he's mentioned as a Nobel-worthy, and this volume comes with an Elfriede Jelinek-blurb on the back cover) he's practically unknown in English -- presumably because he hasn't neatly fit in the idea(l)s of Latin American fiction that have long dominated US/UK publishing (magical realism; 'Boom'ish bombast, etc.). (Ironically, González lived in the US for many years -- but then he's hardly the only Spanish-writing author who hasn't benefitted much from proximity to local American publishers .....)
This is González's first novel -- published in 1983 ! -- but despite his impressive reputation (he's mentioned as a Nobel-worthy, and this volume comes with an Elfriede Jelinek-blurb on the back cover) he's practically unknown in English -- presumably because he hasn't neatly fit in the idea(l)s of Latin American fiction that have long dominated US/UK publishing (magical realism; 'Boom'ish bombast, etc.). (Ironically, González lived in the US for many years -- but then he's hardly the only Spanish-writing author who hasn't benefitted much from proximity to local American publishers .....)