I also enjoyed the essay, “Sidekick,” by Miguel Habedero. He writes,
“Hubo una época en la que Juan Villoro era mi sidekick. Batman tenía a Robin, Superman a Kripto, el perro maravilla, y yo tenía a Juan,” or, “There was a time when Juan Villoro was my sidekick. Batman had Robin, Superman had Kripto, the wonder-dog, and I had Juan.” The essay’s humorous and admiring tone persists, and ends with a note that Habedero will continue the story of Villoro in another column.

This issue is full of blog posts, interviews, and short stories – not to mention the martial arts installments – to keep readers of Spanish busy for awhile.

José María Pozuelo Yvancos of ABC describes Chirbes as “an author who has been on the verge of receiving the award many times and who should have received it before, for a body of work that is, above all, outstandingly coherent and honest. Through his writing Chirbes has created a narrative frieze that tells the complete story of an epoch of Spanish history…in Crematorio the themes that have been constant in his work resurface: particularly an investigation of moral degradation, always served with a measured, careful and highly rhythmical prose.”

Chirbes is also the author of Mimoun, Los disparos del cazador, La buena letra, La larga marcha, La caída de Madrid, and Los viejos amigos.

A few minutes of clicking brought me to Matías Esteban Ilivitsky’s paper recounting a debate between as to whether “human nature” exists.

I also found a link to another blogger’s letter to Pablo Neruda, an interview with Elena Poniatowska, and some excerpts from work.

Both academic – you’ll find, among other scholarly works, a paper titled “Traducción de poesía: forma, repetición y fantasma en el estudio comparado de traducciones de Emily Dickinson (Silvina Ocampo, Amelia Rosselli)” by Delfina Muschietti at the University of Buenos Aires – and entertaining, La Ciudad Letrada’s offerings are various enough to hold a bibliophile’s attention for the rest of the month.

“HermanoCerdo acepta colaboraciones de cuentos, reseñas, ensayos, crónicas, traducciones y textos misceláneos. También acepta colaboraciones para el suplemento de artes marciales, Golpes y Patadas, que comprende guías ilustradas de artes marciales y/o defensa personal, tips, artículos de fondo, calendarios de eventos y torneos, reseñas y cualquier tipo de contenido relacionado con las artes marciales.”

“HermanoCerdo accepts contributions of stories, reviews, essays, chronicles, translations, miscellaneous texts. Also accepted are contributions for the martial arts supplement, Golpes y Patadas, which features illustrated guides to martial arts and/or personal defense, tips, articles on the basics, calendars of events and tournaments, reviews, and any kind of contribution with content related to martial arts.”

If the martial arts tips have tired you out, HermanoCerdo’s eclectic literary offerings are just as exhilarating. Antonio Citron, a Chilean journalist and poet, recently contributed an essay for the “Stories and Chronicles” section about the experience of living in Vietnam. His bio states that he lives, “vagando y fumando cigarrillos taiwandeses,” or “wandering around and smoking Taiwanese cigarrettes,” but his writing showcases the insight he’s gained living abroad:

“Ayer, después de matarme de la risa en la cara de una polluela que exhibía su amplia cultura en un pub del centro de Hanoi y que contaba de donde provenían esos zapatos: “de Pekín”; de donde los aros: “de Bangkok”;…le pregunté: “¿De donde eres tu?”. La respuesta era lógica, pues, chicos y chicas, ella era “ciudadana del mundo”. La miré y solo pude decirle “¡Tu país es realmente un problema para todos!”. “Ciudadanos del mundo”, por favor, háganse un favor y abandonen sus derechos y deleguen sus obligaciones, disuelvan su constitución y dejen en paz a quienes estamos cansados de que nos clasifiquen así, solo porque erramos. Oceánico es lo que prefiero por oposición…Es al mar donde miro cuando me siento saturado de tantos ciudadanos del mundo.”

“Yesterday, after killing the smile on the face of a chick in a pub in the middle of Hanoi who was showing off her extensive culture and who was recounting where she got those shoes: “from Peking;” where her earrings were from: “from Bangkok;”…I asked her: “Where are you from?” Her answer was logical, boys and girls, she was “a citizen of the world.” I looked at her and could only say, “Your country is really a problem for everyone!” “Citizens of the world,” please, do yourselves a favor and abandon your rights and delegate your obligations, dissolve your constitution and leave in peace we who are tired of classifying ourselves as such, simply because we wander. “Oceanic” is the term I prefer instead…it’s to the sea that I look when I feel saturated with so many citizens of the world.”

La mejor poesía social y política es ésta, la que denuncia sin renunciar a la ambición artística…el resultado es una indiscutible y artística complejidad.

(The best social and political poetry is this, that which denounces without renouncing artistic ambition…the result is an unquestionable and artistic complexity.)

Stuart Reigeluth contributes an accompanying article that provides much more information concerning Darwish’s political life. Reigeluth writes that, despite exile, incarceration, and censorship, Darwish, “without accusing any one group, spoke about how the prolonged Israeli occupation has divided Palestine.”

You can find both articles in their original Spanish versions .

Darwish’s has more information about the poet, including his biography, audio clips of Darwish reading his poetry in Arabic, and a listing of his books that have been translated into English.

La mejor poesía social y política es ésta, la que denuncia sin renunciar a la ambición artística…el resultado es una indiscutible y artística complejidad.

(The best social and political poetry is this, that which denounces without renouncing artistic ambition…the result is an unquestionable and artistic complexity.)

Stuart Reigeluth contributes an accompanying article that provides much more information concerning Darwish’s political life. Reigeluth writes that, despite exile, incarceration, and censorship, Darwish, “without accusing any one group, spoke about how the prolonged Israeli occupation has divided Palestine.”

You can find both articles in their original Spanish versions .

Darwish’s has more information about the poet, including his biography, audio clips of Darwish reading his poetry in Arabic, and a listing of his books that have been translated into English.

Each week, El País features “el libro de la semana,” or the “book of the week.” This week, Enrique Vila-Matas writes about his interest in Brendan Behan, an Irish author who died at age 41 in 1964. Although Vila-Matas has long fostered a curiosity for the self-described “alcohólico con problemas de escritura,” or “alcoholic with writing problems,” he only recently picked up one of his books. Vila-Matas writes that Mi Nueva York—originally published under the title Brendan Behan’s New York—is at the same time Joycean and elegaic, as it celebrates the city’s various locations, sensations, and population. Vila-Matas writes:

Ingenioso monólogo, el libro de Brendan Behan es un soliloquio tan emotivo como humorístico sobre la ciudad de Nueva York, a la que el autor consideraba el lugar más fascinante del mundo. Nada podía compararse a esa eléctrica ciudad, el centro del universo.

An ingenious monologue, Brendan Behan’s novel is a soliloquy as emotive as it is humorous about the city of New York, which the author considered the most fascinating place in the world. Nothing could compare to this electric city, the center of the universe.

The complete original article is available

And in case you’re wondering, it appears that Brendan Behan’s New York is currently out of print.