Alejo Carpentier, a pivotal figure in Latin American literature, significantly shaped the "boom" period with his novels and essays. His work is celebrated for its exceptional stylistic refinement, delving into the intricate connections between Europe and the Americas, and between myth and reality. Carpentier frequently explored themes of identity, history, and the quest for an authentic voice in literature. His masterful prose and profound cultural insights establish him as a towering presence in the literary landscape.
Originally published in 1946 and never before available in English, Music in Cuba is not only the best and most extensive study of Cuban musical history, it is a work of literature. Drawing on such primary documents as church circulars and musical scores, Carpentier encompasses European-style elite Cuban music as well as the popular rural Spanish folk and urban Afro-Cuban music.
This fine, somber novel, by the author of the widely acclaimed The Lost Steps, deals with the French Revolution, chiefly in the Caribbean. Not an ordinary historical novel, but rather a poetic, highly informed essay, it forth, in rich prose, a host of memorable impressions -- of Revolutionary Paris, of Caribbean islands sweltering in the sunlight, and of the Revolutionary ideals which, transplanted to these islands, died in blood, sweat and a return to slavery and the old ways. Its chief protagonist is Victor Hugues, a historical figure, who is shown through the eyes of three fictional orphaned adolescents -- Carlos, Sofia, and their cousin Esteban, whom he dazzled at first meeting. Esteban follows Victor as he rises from baker's son and merchant to Revolutionary master of the Caribbean, but sickens eventually of bloodshed and of Victor's ruthless changing to fit shifting policies. Sofia, who loves Victor and joins him, is also finally sickened by the betrayal of Revolutionary ideals, and the changes power has made in Victor. Above its many modern political parallels, this story is powerful evocation of the mysterious evolution, decay and persistence of all human relations and ambitions. Splendidly written.
"Translated into twenty languages and published in more than fourteen Spanish editions, The Lost Steps, originally published in 1953, is Alejo Carpentier's most heralded novel. A composer, fleeing an empty existence in New York City, takes a journey with his mistress to one of the few remaining areas of the world not yet touched by civilization - the upper reaches of a great South American river. The Lost Steps describes his search, his adventures, and the remarkable decision he makes in a village that seems truly outside history."--BOOK JACKET.
El reino de este mundo, novela pionera del realismo magico, explora los origenes de la independencia haitiana, en una America donde lo magico es cotidiano y real Inspirado por la extraordinaria historia original y valido de su admirable poder narrativo, Alejo Carpentier es artifice de un relato alucinante e incomparable que recrea los acontecimientos que precedieron a la independencia haitiana en la corte real de Henri Christophe. A traves de los ojos de un esclavo, el lector se introduce en la fascinante atmosfera de una Haiti en busca de independencia, un mundo de pasiones que se desenvuelven en medio de la feroz caricatura de los extraordinarios lujos de la corte bonapartista; una corte construida con elementos casi salvajes de una isla antillana en la que la tirania cambia brutalmente de nombre y la esclavitud se perpetua bajo la opresiva monarquia de Christophe. Carpentier pinta un mundo barroco en el que los ecos del tamtam repercuten en el laton de los uniformes y en las borlas de las bordadas mitras de fingidos obispos. Una tierra que se vuelca al Vudu en medio del auge y la caida del primer poder negro en America, y el impacto e influencia de la Revolucion Francesa en las Antillas.
Exploring the consequences of the European discovery of the Americas and challenging the myth of Columbus, Alejo Carpentier—"the father of magical realism"—studies the first meetings of the Western and American cultures and the tragic consequences of tarnished and abandoned idealism.
Written by Cuba's most important modern novelist as part of a bet with Gabriel Garcia Marquez, this significant novel is a cornerstone of Latin American literature. In the early 1970s, Marquez, Augusto Roa Bastos, and Alejo Carpentier agreed to each write a novel addressing the dictatorships causing suffering in the region. While Marquez produced The Autumn of the Patriarch and Roa Bastos I, the Supreme, Carpentier's contribution, Reasons of State, is celebrated as Cuba's most significant literary work. The narrative follows an unnamed Latin American dictator who enjoys a lavish life in Paris until a coup at home forces him to return and suppress it with brutal military action. Upon his return to Paris, he faces a cold reception as images of his atrocities circulate among his elite acquaintances. Amid the backdrop of World War One and rising Marxist movements in his country, the dictator grapples with the shifting political landscape. Carpentier weaves a masterful and biting satire of the new world order, characterized by bold storytelling, rich detail, and a suspenseful plot, making this novel a compelling exploration of power and its consequences.
Novela que gira en torno a la concepción de la ópera “Montezuma” de Antonio Vivaldi –la primera que adopta como tema el Nuevo Mundo y en la que, además, los hombres de América desempeñan un papel lleno de nobleza–, “Concierto barroco” tiene como telón de fondo el encuentro entre dos continentes. Omnipresente a lo largo de la obra, la música, una de las disciplinas más queridas y dominadas por Alejo Carpentier (1904-1980), no sólo articula el relato y le sirve de vehículo, sino que al cabo adquiere en la obra un papel casi demiúrgico, como lenguaje que funde en una misma realidad –realidad maravillosa– tiempos y espacios, y hace confluir en ella a maestros antiguos y modernos de uno y otro lado del Atlántico.
Die russische Tänzerin Vera und der kubanische Architekt Enrique lernen sich während des Spanischen Bürgerkriegs kennen. Beide sind jung, haben aber bereits ein bewegtes Leben hinter sich. Vera ist als Kind reicher Kaufleute vor den Auswirkungen der Oktoberrevolution mit ihren Eltern nach London geflüchtet und hat sich später in Paris dem klassischen Tanz gewidmet. Enrique hat das dekadente Milieu seiner in Luxus und Ignoranz lebenden Familie verlassen müssen, als er nach einer Studentenrebellion gegen die Diktatur Machados über Mexiko nach Paris flüchtete. Die Temperamente und Welten, die aufeinanderprallen, könnten nicht unterschiedlicher sein. Dennoch beschließen sie ein gemeinsames Leben, das sie schließlich nach Kuba führt, wo sie die schwierigsten Prüfungen ihrer Existenz erwarten. Mit Carpentiers beiden Hauptgestalten, ihren Freunden und Geliebten durchmißt der Roman die ganze Skala menschlicher Erfahrungen und Empfindungen.
Transcurre durante los 46 minutos que dura la ejecución de la «Sinfonía Heroica» de Beethoven en un teatro de La Habana donde se ha refugiado un joven que ha pasado del combate político a la acción terrorista y, mediante la tortura, a la traición. Sirviéndose de su portentoso dominio del lenguaje y de la técnica narrativa, Alejo Carpentier (1904-1980) recrea en esta novela a través de una pluralidad de voces el narrador, el acosado, el taquillero del teatro tanto el clima político que se vivió en Cuba durante los turbulentos años de la dictadura de Gerardo Machado, como los aspectos que nos dan la clave para entender la vida del protagonista.
