Book Description
tales based on Mayan myths, tr G Alter-Gilbert ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A surreal journey into the soul of Guatemala
"The Mirror of Lida Sal," by Miguel Angel Asturias, is a noteworthy piece of 20th century fiction by a giant of Guatemalan literature. Subtitled "Tales Based on Mayan Myths and Guatemalan Legends," this volume has been translated into English by Gilbert Alter-Gilbert.

In this book, Asturias draws upon Central American history and culture to create several fascinating short pieces. His style (as I read it through Alter-Gilbert's translation) is psychedelic and florid; Asturias mixes realistic and fantastic elements throughout the book. The result is comparable to a prose version of the paintings of Spanish artist Salvador Dali.

I don't find all of the stories in "The Mirror of Lida Sal" to be equally effective. At times, Asturias' indulgence in ornate wordplay seems to overwhelm plot and characterization. But this is still a richly rewarding volume for the attentive reader. Some of the major themes of the book include magic, transformation, and cultural hybridization.

The best pieces in the book include the title story, which tells of a working class mulatta's attempt to ensnare the man of her desire; "Anteater Juan," a bizarre fantasy; and "Legend of the Silent Bell," a story of religious fanaticism and trans-Atlantic intrigue in colonial Central America. Miguel Angel Asturias is one of the most important figures in Latin American literature, and "The Mirror of Lida Sal" is definitely worth gazing into. ... Read more

Book Description
Winner! Nobel Prize for Literature. Guatemalan diplomat and writer Miguel Angel Asturias (1899-1974) began this award-winning work while still a law student. It is a story of ruthless dictator and his schemes to dispose of a political adversary in an unnamed Latin American country usually identified as Guatemala. The book has been acclaimed for portraying both a totalitarian government and its damaging psychological effects. Drawing from his experiences as a journalist writing under repressive conditions, Asturias employs such literary devices as satire to convey the government's transgressions and surrealistic dream sequences to demonstrate the police state's impact on the individual psyche. Asturias's stance against all forms of injustice in Guatemala caused critics to view the author as a compassionate spokesperson for the oppressed. "My work," Asturias promised when he accepted the Nobel Prize, "will continue to reflect the voice of the people, gathering their myths and popular beliefs and at the same time seeking to give birth to a universal consciousness of Latin American problems." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

great book! best read in Spanish if you have the oportunity
I have read this book in spanish and in english, and like the author, Im Guatemalan too, soo I've seen the places he describes and I know the historical events behind this book, so my advice to you is to read it, you will love it, even if it is difficult to read sometimes, its worth the effort, but if you want to fully absorb the book, investigate the XX century guatemalan history, that will help you read this book in an easier way.
By the way in spanish the book's name is "El Senor Presidente" wich means "Mr. President", not "The President".

El Presidente
I thought The President by Miguel Angel Asturias was a beautiful work, but better read in its original language. The English translation was at some times difficult to read and didn't make sense, it was done without care or consideration to the moral the work was trying to portray. The pages where filled with powerful images and symbols Asturias himself could have witnessed. You could tell the author knew what he was talking about and felt passionate about what he wrote, that passion drove the story on and really showed accurately the political oppression the poor where shown at that time. The characters were dynamic, intense and could have represented easily some political figures of the time. He described each and every character as being guilty of something and didn't shine a godly light on anyone, even the victims of the government. He didn't romanticize the world of fear and constant oppression he strove to show, but presented it plainly as what it was. This is a moving read and I would recommend it to anyone. But you have to be prepared to stick with it because I found the way it is writtensomewhat different from more common novels. It would be best if read in Spanish because then you wouldn't have to deal with the poorly done translation. I had read some information on Asturias and that really gives new insight into the work. Being able to understand the parallels between the life the author lead and the difficulties he went through gave deeper meaning to what happened to the characters.

No joke.
Enormously important book which rightly got the Nobel Prize for Literature.It could also have gotten it for human rights.Sadly meaningful in 2005 also.I don't understand, however, why people keep using "magic realism" or "surrealism" to describe it.Fantasy?No.

A Favorite...
Poetic.Artful.Devastating.The best aspect of this book lies in the author's ability to so deftly articulate the psychological, nightmare-ish, indeed, surreal aspects of living under a dictatorship.To an outsider such as myself, it was deeply moving to see inside and realize how everyone's actions can be justified under such an extreme system.That's terrifying.

WHAT A BOOK, A Difficult but Rewarding Book!
Is this a difficult read? yes, and especially if you're not used to latinamerican literature or of 'magical realism'. Is it fascinating, entrancing and a rewarding experince? YES, and then more. After reading a lot of books you come to appreciate it when an author tries a lot of different styles and plays around with time and space and creates fascinating multi-layered characters, characters which are not clean-drawn from the beginning and you never really know their true intentions of their true nature (until the very end of course). This adds a lot of suspense to the novel. Although it is far from being just a suspense novel, it has romance in it, social commentary, statements on human-nature and politics, bits of comedy, lots of dreamlike surrealistic sequences and quirky characters. It is a hard and heavy read though, I found myself rereading complete chapters to fully digest the story and tone, it is all well worth it though. The story is excellent and very involving, so are the characters, but if you relish literature and how far it can reach an audience as an art form, than you will be fascinated by Asturias's prose, it is so dense and thick that when you finish you feel like you read twice as many pages and 'experienced' a lot of varied emotions. The ending could come as a surpise to many, I'm not going to give it away, only to say that you dont notice how much you are fond of the characters themselves till you feel their pain in the last chapters. Beautiful novel and one of the best examples of why the BOOM of latinamerican writers in that period. This is one of the best of that period and it has aged well. If you liked this I would recommend anything from Gabriel Garcia Marquez (who uses a lighter more fun prose) or Juan Rulfo (genius, short novels that pack a punch). Be warned though, take your time with this one, it is well worth your efforts. A solid 9.5 out of 10! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

This edition is an abridgement. . .
1 star = Amazon's publication information
5 star = the novel itself.

This edition is an abridgement of the original novel. Be warned: there is no indication in Amazon's publication info that this is an abridgement, except for the page count (120 pages).

This edition is a good tool for those learning Latin American Spanish.

Again the Santillana Edition is not the full novel.

Un libro sumamente interesante de leer.
Este libro menciona las mas duras cualidades de una presidencia. Ademasincluye experiencias propias para darle mas poder a las descripciones queel autor hace. Incluso, el autor se pone dentro de la novelas para darlemayor fuerza a lo que esta escribiendo porque el ha vivido esos momentos deangustias y dolor. Lo recomiendo de verdad. Ademas es un libro que no debede faltar en su biblioteca.

An astounding novel of human misery and triumph
I read this great book by Miguel Angel Asturias a few years ago.It is set in the beautiful yet corrupt country of Guatemala, where justice is rarely done. The book is masterfully written by Guatemala's best know author and nobel prize winner, Miguel Angel Asturias. I definitely recomend this book to anyone looking for an entertaining and revealing look at Guatemala's former political and social situation, one that can still be seen in many countries of the world. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

A Brochure for Guatemala
Asturias writes like no one I have ever read before, but what irked me was the constant dependency on the back of the book for keys as to what anything meant.Much of it comes from the legends of the Mayan culturewhich I'm sure most people don't know concisely enough to know parts of theMayan "bible." For the more patient reader, it is an amazing setof tales, but without the critical edition, I think one might becomedevoured by the profundity it entails, and comprehend only the title.Fromwhat I read however, I realized that we are dealing with an unorthodoxwriter, a shaman with words, and the predecessor of Marquez.

The book is a excelent review of investigation about "Men of
The book is a excelent review of investigation about "Men of maize". I'd apreciate if you could send me the address (email, phone, city etc.) of Gerald Martin. I want tocontact him because I'like to sendhim a article about Asturias book. Sincerly yours Dr. Oscar Vinueza.

A book every being should read...
Men of Maize is an incredible tale of Indian life in Latin America duringthe early twentieth century, woven poetically by Asturias.In six parts hesimultaneously creates and re-tells history, blurring the distinctionsbetween reality and myth.He interweaves the past, present and future,giving the background tale, then continuing on to show how that tale wouldbecome the folklore of the future.

In Maize,there is a strongundercurrent of the clash of cultures that fuels the fires of conflictbetween the Ladinos, Mestizos and Indians.The Indians see themselves asmade of maize, and to have their flesh and blood grown by foreigners forprofit is abhorrent to them.As they are evermore forced off their land toclear fields for the commercial maizegrowers they begin to rebel.It ishere that Asturias starts his novel, with an attack on Indian Chief GasparIlóm led by soldiers and maizegrowers.The death of Ilóm, one of themagical firefly wizards, wreaks a cycle of revenge that affects all whowere involved.A series of battles ensue, and tensions rise, giving way topermanent distrust and dislike between the two groups.Asturias then takesthe reader farther through time, showing how the past discords (and thelegends that arose from it) give hope and motivation to the generations ofthe future, as they struggle against the same forces their ancestorsstruggled with.He creates the tales of many different players indifferent periods of time, such as the great Chief Ilóm, the Indianpostman, and Goyo Yic, the blind Indian beggar.Asturias connects theseseemingly unrelated lives with a common theme: each man is graduallyalienated from a "progressing" society through losing his land,his woman, and eventually his own self.By this Asturias describes thereality for an indigenous person living in an ever-fluctuatingpost-colonial Latin America.

Crucial to understanding this clash ofcultures is understanding the Indian way of life.For the indigenous ofLatin America, the answer to everything lay in the every day activities andchoices of the people.The Maya are a highly ritualized culture, even thesmallest activity, such as eating or drinking, is governed by unwrittenrules.The clothes, the huipil, the essential food, maize, and the petatemat on which they sleep, each play their part in appeasing a higher power(by now syncretized into a Christian God).Asturias makes hundreds ofreferences to these daily activities and the beliefs they represent.Ofcentral importance is the maize, the crop of the Maya, their sustenance,and the basis for their existence.To interfere with the growing of themaize is to interfere with the very core of a Maya, himself being made ofmaize.Another recurring theme in this book is the importance of thenahual, or "soul double" that each person is assigned at birth. The nahuales take the form of animals, and those animals serve as aconnection for each person to the animal world, as aides and companions.

In a loose sense the novel does progress linearly through the years ofthe early 1900's, though the reader immediately feels a more cyclicalmotion of time.Often unsure of how much time has passed between stories,and whether the events being described are in "real" time ordream time, the reader is swirled into the reality of the tale.However,by the end of the book the reader, almost surprised, finds each story tiedto another in some form, with the final revelation of the identity of thebetrayess, María Tecún, completing all cycles.

Asturias' ability to writefrom the native perspective is amazing.He has succeeded in making thisnovel a mystical and magical experience for the reader.Through his poeticlanguage Asturias places the reader right in the heart of the forest, withmagical fireflies swarming about and rain pelting down on the dusty paths.He has masterfully recreated in writing the lack of acknowledgement of timethat is pervasive throughout Latin America. It is no easy feat to put inwriting la magia de lo real, or, the magic of reality, and Asturias hasdone it well.He has shared with the reader an existence contrary to"Western" consciousness, where no thing is governed by"Western" rules, yet this existence found itself trying toreconcile itself with the ever-"Westernizing" world.Throughfiction Asturias painst the picture of reality - the cruelty and tragedy ofthe idigenous struggle to survive in post-colonial Latin America.

The mirror of Guatemala
Some people said: Asturias is a writer. I say Asturias is an artist who paints the reality of a magic land: Guatemala. You could feel it. Sorry for my english, but I'm another "woman of maize". (Usually we dont speak english). ... Read more

Book Description
This digital document, covering the life and work of Miguel Angel Asturias, is an entry from Contemporary Authors, a reference volume published by Thompson Gale. The length of the entry is 3782 words. The page length listed above is based on a typical 300-word page. Although the exact content of each entry from this volume can vary, typical entries include the following information:

• Place and date of birth and death (if deceased)
• Family members
• Education
• Professional associations and honors
• Employment
• Writings, including books and periodicals
• A description of the author's work
• References to further readings about the author

Book Description
This digital document is an article from Proceso, published by CISA Comunicacion e Informacion, S.A. de C.V. on November 18, 2001. The length of the article is 698 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Libros: Miguel Angel Asturias.(Miguel Angel Asturias. El Gran Lengua. La voz más clara de Guatemala)(TT: Books: Miguel Angel Asturias.)(TA: Miguel Angel Asturias. El Gran Lengua. La voz más clara de Guatemala)(Reseña)
Author: Jorge Munguía Espitia
Publication: Proceso (Magazine/Journal)
Date: November 18, 2001
Publisher: CISA Comunicacion e Informacion, S.A. de C.V.
Page: 88

Article Type: Reseña

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more

Book Description
The Rizzoli Art Classics series brings you Piero della Francesca, Titian, Caravaggio, and Velázquez, all inbeautifully illustrated monographs, offering high-quality reproductions in compact, accessible volumes.These books feature a literary introduction by a renowned art historian, a thoroughly researched essay, and captions describing the artist's most famous canvases. A useful appendix section includes an extensive chronology of the artist's life and important historical events of his time; a compilation of writings by well-known historians, insight into each painter's stylistic development; a geographical table detailing the location of each painting in the book; and a concise bibliography with suggested further readings.With authoritative text by leading art historians, these lavishly illustrated editions provide fresh insight into the art and lives of some of the most fascinating artists in the history of painting. ... Read more

Product Description
De contraportada: Cuando nace Miguel Ángel Asturias el 19 de octubre de 1899 en el barrio de la Parroquia Vieja de la Ciudad de Guatemala, se realiza una quiebre en el destino de las letras guatemaltecas, pues aunque en ese momento es imperceptible, con él nace para ellas la magia una magia que repercutirá en la obra del que será galardonado con el Premio Nobel con los tonos del teponaztle y de la banda pueblerina. También nace una voz que ha de concientizar al pueblo guatemalteco así como al ciudadano mundial. Empezando con las páginas de su tesis de licenciatura en Derecho, pone de relieve la injusticia en todas las capas sociales en el entorno rural y urbano de su patria. Nacen el genio y la imaginación que idearán los mundos novelescos que harán palpable la realidad guatemalteca. Más adelante sus lecturas, estudios y su experiencia vital le proporcionarán la arcilla que el talento innato ha de modelar en espacios maravillosos pero pertinentes a la realidad guatemalteca.En este libro, un grupo de críticos y estudiosos nacionales y del extranjero aportan nuevos acercamientos críticos y ven a la obra del fenomenal autor Nobel desde frescas ópticas. Cada uno de los ensayos aquí contenidos abre un espacio nuevo en la crítica de esta diversa y fértil obra.Oralia Preble-Niemi ... Read more