The Luminous Novel
Mario Levrero author Annie McDermott translator
Format:Paperback
Publisher:And Other Stories
Published:3rd Aug '21
Should be back in stock very soon
Levrero’s touching and funny magnum opus about domestic life, the writing process, love, the fear of death, pets, and a funereal pigeon.
'It compels our attention. More than this: as it lurches on in its awkward, clumsy way, with all the grace of a circus bear negotiating a tightrope, it grips our imagination in ways we cannot readily pin down . . . an improbably enthralling reading experience.' Michael Kerrigan, TLS
A writer attempts to complete the novel for which he has been awarded a big fat Guggenheim grant, though for a long time he succeeds mainly in procrastinating – getting an electrician to rewire his living room so he can reposition his computer, buying an armchair, or rather, two: ‘In one, you can’t possibly read: it’s uncomfortable and your back ends up crooked and sore. In the other, you can’t possibly relax: the hard backrest means you have to sit up straight and pay attention, which makes it ideal if you want to read.’
Insomniacs, romantics and anyone who’s ever written (or failed to write) will fall in love with this compelling masterpiece told by a true original, with all his infuriating faults, charming wit and intriguing musings.
‘From domestic distractions to doubt and crippling insomnia, never has a book about the repetitious banality of the process of writing a novel – or, in fact avoiding writing a novel – been so compelling and accurately rendered. Mario Levrero turns the act of procrastination into a supreme art form.’ Benjamin Myers
‘We are all his children.’ Álvaro Enrigue
‘Levrero is an author who challenges the canonical idea of Latin American literature. If you really want to complete the puzzle of our tradition, you must read him.’ Juan Pablo Villalobos, Granta
‘The Luminous Novel could qualify as a new instalment in the literature of boredom, except that it's too charmingly, haplessly funny to be boring.’ Lily Meyer, NPR
‘The Luminous Novel is Levrero's greatest work, which he wrote by forcing himself to write it, knowing beforehand that what he wanted to write was impossible. That’s why, instead of the novel, he narrates the distractions that sidetrack him from the novel. It’s not so surprising that the happiest moment in The Luminous Novel is when Mario Levrero manages, finally, to fix Word 2000. Surely, fixing Word 2000 is easier than writing that unfathomable novel that Levrero writes but doesn’t write. But to write the luminous novel it is necessary to pass through the dark novel; to make true literature it is crucial to turn to, as he says, fraudulent literature. Novel without a novel; literature without literature.’ Alejandro Zambra
ISBN: 9781913505011
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 600g
544 pages