Obras Reunidas I. Fundaciones mexicanas. (Reunited Works 1: Mexican Foundations)

by María Elena Cruz, NY -- Críticas, 9/1/2007

This is the first volume of an ambitious project: to compile all the works of Carlos Fuentes (b. 1928), one of the most important Latin American writers of the 20th century and a member of Latin America’s "Boom" generation. In his introduction, recognized scholar Ortega states that this anthology should not be seen as a definitive edition of the writer's work, since he is still alive and his work is not complete; instead, the compilation is an invitation to re-read Fuentes through contemporary eyes. This first volume includes two of Fuente’s most famous novels: originally published in 1962, La muerte de Artemio Cruz, a groundbreaking novel in Latin American literature, both stylistically and thematically, narrates the life of Artemio Cruz, a soldier of the Mexican Revolution who becomes a corrupt politician; and Los años con Laura Díaz (originally published in 1999) a family saga that starts in pre-revolutionary Mexico and ends in Los Angeles in the 21st Century. Renown writers Héctor Aguilar Camín and Sergio Ramírez provide short and enlightening prologs for each novel, shedding light on Mexico's history. The entire series, which will be organized by theme in order to facilitate the analysis and interpretation of Fuentes’s works, is part of Mexico’s Fondo de Cultura Económica’s continuing effort to compile the work of the most relevant Mexican writers, such as Elena Poniatowska and Rosario Castellanos. This volume, and surely the entire series to come, is essential for every bookstore and library with a focus on Spanish-language literature, as well as for all academic libraries.