Prof. Alejandro Quin Presents at Books & Bridges
Thursday, November 8 6:30pm Weller Book Works
Alejandro Quin, professor of Latin American literature at the University of Utah, will discuss “One Hundred Years of Solitude” as a novel that constantly demands a reflective relationship with the present. In 1967 when Argentina’s Sudamericana Press published the latest work by a relatively unknown Colombian author based in Mexico City, few could have predicted the impact it would have on the world literary scene. With “One Hundred Years of Solitude,” Gabriel García Márquez achieved a rare balancing act between commercial success, popular recognition, and critical acclaim. His book brought Latin American literature to the fore internationally and remains the most translated Spanish-language literary text of the 20th-century. But what is left of this celebrated novel after its remarkable trajectory and global canonization? In our time of political and ecological crisis, this contemporary classic goes beyond the boom of magical realism and sheds light on our current condition. A Q&A and refreshments will follow. The lecture is made possible by a grant from Utah Humanities.
This event is organized by Books & Bridges — a community institute of ideas and conversation. Our mission is to facilitate discussion on the best of human thought. We explore the wisdoms of the world and apply them to modern life. We have no political, religious or ideological affiliation. In a society divided by uncivil discourse, the beauty of the humanities—novels, history, philosophy, poetry, ethics and epics—lifts us to our better angels. In our busy world we need space for friends and fellow learners to do a little more heart-to-heart and mind-to-mind.