Mario Levrero - his writing, structured around humour and unease, takes the form of a clean prose based on the psychological that has been characterized as “introspective realism”. A cult writer, later in life he was seen as a master and point of reference for many of the best writers in Latin America
Mario Levrero, Empty Words, Trans. by Annie McDermott, Coffee House Press, 2019.
excerpt (pdf)
An eccentric novelist begins to keep a notebook of handwriting exercises, hoping that if he’s able to improve his penmanship, his personal character will also improve. What begins as a mere physical exercise becomes involuntarily colored by humorous reflections and tender anecdotes about living, writing, and the sense―or nonsense―of existence.
“A lighthearted wisdom beats in every sentence of Empty Words, a little masterpiece by Mario Levrero, who is, to me, one of the funniest and most influential writers of recent times. This book might change your life, or at least your handwriting.” —Alejandro Zambra
“We are all his children.” —Álvaro Enrigue
Praise for Mario Levrero
“Levrero is Kafka’s ‘everyday’ flip side, a shadow of Camus with a comical take.” — El País
“Style and imagination like Levrero’s are rare in Spanish-language literature.” — Antonio Muñoz Molina
“Mario Levrero is a genius.” — …
excerpt (pdf)
An eccentric novelist begins to keep a notebook of handwriting exercises, hoping that if he’s able to improve his penmanship, his personal character will also improve. What begins as a mere physical exercise becomes involuntarily colored by humorous reflections and tender anecdotes about living, writing, and the sense―or nonsense―of existence.
“A lighthearted wisdom beats in every sentence of Empty Words, a little masterpiece by Mario Levrero, who is, to me, one of the funniest and most influential writers of recent times. This book might change your life, or at least your handwriting.” —Alejandro Zambra
“We are all his children.” —Álvaro Enrigue
Praise for Mario Levrero
“Levrero is Kafka’s ‘everyday’ flip side, a shadow of Camus with a comical take.” — El País
“Style and imagination like Levrero’s are rare in Spanish-language literature.” — Antonio Muñoz Molina
“Mario Levrero is a genius.” — …
