SHORT STORIES
Edgar Allan Poe - Itzul / Trans: Koro Nabarro · Ibaizabal
There have been few writers in the history of literature who have been the source of as many different interpretations and hypothesis as Edgar Allen Poe. Few have been capable, such as he has, of enthralling and obsessing so many readers from generation to generation. Poe the character has also become a centre of massive attention. Jon Miranda was the first to translate Poe to Basque. They both actually have quite a lot in common. We wouldn't be far wrong in saying that Miranda, just Baudelaire before him, must have considered Poe as a type of twin. That's how Baudelaire saw it anyway. He claimed that he had dreamed about what Poe wrote before it was actually written. He dreamt of the characters, the settings and the phrases used by the American writer. Baudelaire and Mallarm were responsible for making Poe a writer of renown in Europe. Ever since then he has had an incredible influence, for an American, on European literature. The Tell Tale Heart, The Fall of The House of Usher and The Mystery of Marie Roget have appeared in numerous anthologies. All these stories have become firm favourites for many writers - not to mention artists or filmmakers - and all appear in this latest collection by Koro Nabarro.
AGUR, DARWIN. ETA BESTE ARKEOLOGIA BATZUK
Jon Alonso · Pamiela
In his literary essay Agur, Darwin eta beste arkeologia batzuk the writer Jon Alonso continues on with the line of thought that can be found in his Camembert helburu or in Peru Alberdi's excellent Satorrak baino lurperago. Alonso steers well clear of the tediousness of University style essays; literature is where he starts out from and literature is where he's aiming to go. The pains and impotence of a writer in and translator to Basque are clearly on show in this piece of work, a reflection on everyday conversation; the universal nature of literature, national literature, Basque gastronomy as an excuse, the exactness of a language, the reasons people have for writing in their own (Basque) language...the writer questions the most rounded truths, he has given us the chance to read so many different writers, and in doing so, has caused discussion which, in turn, has set people looking for new answers. He takes risks and should be applauded for it. Winner of the Juan Zelaia Award, Jon Alonso's Agur, Darwin eta beste arkeologia batzuk is part of a smashing collection by book publishers Pamiela. Really interesting essays at a time when everything other than novels has little or no outlet.
