It is difficult to summarize a literary career like that of Paul Auster in four books. A master narrator of chance and time management, he knew how to capture the pulse of his time and the history of his country with his introspective style. Without the intention of being canonical, we suggest a basic guide to discover or reread, as the case may be, one of the most interesting authors of recent years.
New York Trilogy. Anagram. Translated Maribel de Juan. 344 pp
Without a doubt one of Auster’s most memorable literary works. The writer handles, manipulates and reinvents the detective genre, of which he makes a postmodern rereading with metaphysical overtones. In the first story, Crystal Citya phone call will involve a writer in a complex plot of madness and redemption. Ghosts tells the adventures of a detective caught in the strangest case of his career. For his part, The closed room narrates the encounter of a novelist with his own demons, following the disappearance of a childhood friend. The detective plot serves as a framework to present the reader with a fascinating game of mirrors, symbols, winks and surprises; to explore a strange, dark and disturbing world, populated by fascinating and ambiguous characters.
Brooklyn Fallies. Anagram. Translated Benito Gómez Ibáñez. 320 pp.
Nathan Glass has survived lung cancer and a divorce after thirty-three years of marriage, and has returned to Brooklyn, the place where he was born and spent his childhood. He wants to live what’s left of his “ridiculous life” there. Until he became ill he was a successful insurance salesman; Now that he no longer has to earn a living, he plans to write The book of madness of men. He will tell everything that happens around him, everything that happens to him and what occurs to him, and even some of the stories – whimsical, crazy, truly crazy – of people he remembers.
Here and now (Letters 2008-2011). Anagram/Mondadori. Translated Benito Gómez Ibáñez. 272 pp.
Here and now is the result of that proposal: an epistolary dialogue between two great writers who became great friends: Paul Auster and JM Coetzee. Sports, fatherhood, the economic crisis, art, incest, bad reviews, childhood, marriage, love… are just some of the topics covered in the three years these letters cover. Filled with quotes, personal anecdotes, and film references, this correspondence offers an intimate portrait of two fundamental authors.
Baumgartner. Six Barral. Translated Benito Gómez Ibáñez. 261 pp.
Baumgartner is an eminent writer and university professor, as eccentric as he is incredibly tender, who lost his wife nine years ago. His life was defined by the deep and abiding love he felt for Anna and now, at 71, he continues to struggle to live in her absence. Their common story begins in 1968, when they meet as penniless students in New York and despite being almost opposites in many aspects, they begin a passionate relationship that will last for forty years. The overcoming of grief over the loss of Anna is interspersed with wonderful stories – from her youth in Newark to her father’s life as a failed revolutionary in Eastern Europe – and with a powerful reflection on the way we love at different stages of life. life.
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