{"id":9700,"date":"2024-09-18T01:42:08","date_gmt":"2024-09-18T01:42:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.rutgers.edu\/books-we-read\/?p=9700"},"modified":"2024-09-13T00:09:38","modified_gmt":"2024-09-13T00:09:38","slug":"arango-garcia-marquez","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.rutgers.edu\/books-we-read\/arango-garcia-marquez\/","title":{"rendered":"Staff Picks: “Perspectives on the Life and Works of Gabriel Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez” by Gustavo Arango"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Book<\/a>

Click on image to find the book on the publisher\u2019s website<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Have you ever read a book that had such a profound impact that it defined you and your career for the rest of your life? Contributing to the English-language literature on Colombian Nobel laureate Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez, <\/span>Perspectives on the Life and Works of Gabriel Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez<\/span><\/a><\/em>, written by Rutgers alum Gustavo Arango is an inspiring story at the crossroads of literary criticism. It is both a biography of Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez with new elements, and Arango’s memoir.<\/span><\/p>\n

Touched by <\/span>Leaf Storm<\/span><\/a><\/em>, the first novel published by Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez, the young Arango has chosen a career path early in his life that intertwines reading, researching, interpreting, teaching, and writing about the works of one of the greatest authors of our time, thanks to the librarian in his high school library who made M\u00e1rquez’s books available for their young students.<\/span><\/p>\n

The first steps<\/span><\/h4>\n
\"Book<\/a>

Click on image to find the book on Amazon<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Following in the footsteps of Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez, who also wanted to become a writer early on, Arango decided to study journalism to learn the trade. After graduation, he accepted a position as a journalist at <\/span>El Universal<\/span><\/em> in Cartagena de Indias because he read that Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez greatly attributes his writing skills to his initial experience working there as a news reporter<\/span>\u00a0in 1948-49. After all, isn’t a writer <\/span>merely a journalist who has learned to write better than the others<\/span><\/em>?<\/span><\/p>\n

Researching articles written by his role model for <\/span>El Universal<\/span><\/em>, Arango discovered texts by Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez published without signing his name or initials. He collected and shared them, along with testimonies by Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez and his friends in a book published in 1995 entitled <\/span>A Bouquet of “forget-me-nots” (<\/i>in Spanish as Un ramo de Nomeolvides<\/i><\/a>). It was so <\/span>appreciated by Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez himself \u00ad- to the point that, when he borrowed a copy from his friend, he told him to “consider it to be stolen.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Meeting your role model<\/span><\/h4>\n
\"Two<\/a>

Gustavo Arango with Gabriel G\u00e1rcia M\u00e1rquez in Barranquilla in December 1997<\/i> (From Gustavo Arango\u2019s Facebook page)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Perspectives on the Life and Works of Gabriel Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez <\/span><\/em>is peppered with inspirational stories of the two writers’ personal and intellectual encounters. The moments of the most intimate connection between the great writer and the apprentice, which took place during a workshop on narrative journalism in Barranquilla, Colombia, in December 1997, are unveiled in the chapter entitled “Lessons of the Master.” \u00a0With advice withstanding time, this early version of today’s online master classes introduces aspiring writers to the nitty-gritty of quality writing through the lens of Arango, the journalist and creative writer, learning from the master himself. Spoiler alert: The tools and tricks of the trade remain the same, with good editing taking the podium time and time again.<\/span><\/p>\n

With a name identical to a famous fashion designer (a heads-up, just in case you Google the name), Arango has achieved it all and more. He has become an <\/span>accomplished author with outstanding feedback from readers<\/span><\/a>, publishing several successful books, mainly in Spanish. He has also become an official “Gabologist” (Gabo is Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez’s nickname), who made a real difference with his scholarship rather than just growing the mandatory reading list of peer-reviewed articles for his college students.<\/span><\/p>\n

Scholarly and popular<\/span><\/h4>\n

As for scholarly content, <\/span>Perspectives on the Life and Works of Gabriel Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez<\/span><\/em> intends to offer a “better understanding of the origins, creative practices, and prevailing themes” in the Nobel laureate\u2019s works. In Arango’s own words, the book reflects his multiple perspectives on the life and works of Gabriel Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez as a regular reader, an aspiring writer, a journalist, a biographer, and even as his teacher. It is a pretty unique perspective, resulting in an entertaining read (even for rigorous academic audiences), masterfully written by a creative mind in a style matching a more personal approach.<\/span><\/p>\n

For researchers, also notable is Part II, “The Troubadour Files.” With its valuable primary source material, this section backs up the last chapter of Part I<\/span>, in which Arango calls Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez the \u201dCaribbean Troubadour.”\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Adding to the English-language literature<\/span><\/h4>\n

Chapters of this book <\/span>are often based<\/span> on Arango’s publications and presentations, which are available only in Spanish. <\/span>Thus, this book adds to the <\/span>knowledge of the English-speaking world about<\/span> one of the most influential Latin American writers of the 20th century.<\/span><\/p>\n

One of Arango’s most significant contributions to world literature <\/span>is revealed<\/span> in chapter 10, through an English-language version of his article entitled “A defense of a posthumous novel,” originally published as “<\/span>La <\/span>soledad<\/span> de las palabras<\/span><\/a>” in Spanish in <\/span>Confabulario<\/span><\/em>, the literary magazine of the newspaper El Universal<\/em> (Mexico City). Based on his research on the manuscripts located at the Harry Ransom Center of the University of Texas in Austin, Arango argues that, even if Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez had decided against publishing the unfinished novel, only minimal edits would be necessary to finalize and publish this novel, and it would significantly contribute to the author’s oeuvre.<\/span><\/p>\n

Apparently, his justification went far enough. The novel <\/span>En Agosto Nos Vemos<\/a><\/span><\/em> was published earlier this year in multiple languages (<\/span>Until August<\/span><\/a><\/em> in English).<\/span><\/p>\n