Gabriel García Márquez: Sons publish the last novel that the late author wanted to destroy
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Gabriel García Márquez is best known for “One Hundred Years of Solitude and Love in the Time of Cholera.”
When Nobel Prize-winning author Gabriel García Márquez died a decade ago, he left behind a novel he wrote while battling dementia.
In his final days he told his sons that the book must be destroyed.
However, they defied their father and published the book, which they describe as a “treason.”
Until August received mixed reviews, with the Guardian critic describing it as a “sketch as blurry and flawed as sketches in general”.
She said the 100-page book was “like a faded souvenir, shabby but valuable for its associations with the fabulous fantasy world that Márquez conjured in his heyday.”
The Colombian writer, who died in 2014, was best known as a pioneer of the magical-realist writing style.
He wrote books such as “Love in the Time of Cholera” and “One Hundred Years of Solitude,” which have sold more than 50 million copies worldwide.
“That’s what children are for”
Explaining their decision to publish, García Márquez's son Gonzalo told BBC Radio 4's Front Row that in the end the author was “unable to judge his work because he only saw the flaws but not the interesting things that were there.” were present in it. .
Having recently re-read the text, Gonzalo said that he found it “not as disastrous as Gabo had judged it” and that it was a valuable addition to his work because it showed him a new side and was “unique” be.
“In any case, we wouldn’t destroy it,” he said. “In 2022, we took one of the versions and read it, and there really wasn't much discussion about it.
“We realized the book was complete, we realized we didn't need to edit much. There were no additions, there were no big changes. So there was really no discussion.”
“We thought about it for about three seconds – was it a betrayal of my parents, of my father's?” [wishes]?
“And we came to the conclusion: yes, it was treason. But that’s what children are for.”
He said it would have to be released at some point, so the family wanted to release a version they agreed to that would protect copyright.
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Gonzalo García Barcha said he believes this new book is unique
The novel centers on a middle-aged woman who travels alone to an island every summer to visit her mother's grave, finding a new lover on each trip despite being happily married.
It is the first time that García Márquez focuses on a female protagonist.
“Normally, when reviewing a disappointing posthumous release or a minor work by a major author, one has to say that, despite its flaws, it will delight loyal fans.
“I don’t think that applies to Until August. Márquez knew this and was right not to want it to see the light of day,” he continued.
“Strangely moving”
Still, he added that the novel “has qualities” and is “set in a world that strikes an impressive balance between the real and the dreamlike.”
“It is as if the book contained both Marquez the Elder and Marquez the Younger, with the awareness and weary good humor of age conveyed in the probing, hesitant manner of the Apprentice,” she wrote.
However, she noted that “the novel lacks the endless, imaginative discussions of folk tales, backstory, and verbal flourish that characterize the best of Marquez.”
“Until August, nothing will add to the legend of Gabo; it does nothing to diminish them,” she concluded.
Netflix plans
In addition to a new book, Márquez's 1967 novel “One Hundred Years of Solitude” is being adapted into a Spanish-language Netflix series.
According to the New York Times, Márquez received many offers over the years to adapt his book into a film, but declined because he wanted it to be written only in Spanish.
García Márquez's book is not the first novel to be published posthumously against the authors' wishes.
- Before author Franz Kafka When he died of tuberculosis in 1924, he asked his friend Max Brod to burn his entire work. Between 1925 and 1935, however, Brod published his collection of works, including The Trial, The Castle, and America.
- Lolita author Vladimir Nabokov asked his wife to destroy his last novel, “The Original of Laura,” if he did not finish it. In 2009, 30 years after Nabokov's death, his son published the unfinished work, written in pencil on index cards.
- According to legend, Roman poet Virgil asked to burn the scrolls on which he wrote his epic The Aeneid because he feared he would not be able to complete the work before his death.
Hear more from Gonzalo García Barcha on BBC Radio 4's Front Row from 7:15pm GMT on Wednesday 6 March and then on BBC Sounds.
Until August is released in the UK on Tuesday 12 March.
