Ancestralities: In conversation with Chigozie Obioma and Itamar Vieira JúniorIn November 2020, for the Festa Literária Internacional de Paraty, I chaired an online conversation between two prize-winning authors. Nigeria's Chigozie Obioma discussed his novel An Orchestra of Minorities with Brazil's Itamar Vieira Júnior, author… Mar 27 23March 27, 2023Article at Angel on Authory
Transitions: In conversation with Caetano Veloso and Paul B PreciadoIn November 2020, for the Festa Literária Internacional de Paraty, I chaired an online conversation between Brazilian musician Caetano Veloso and Spanish philosopher and activist Paul B Preciado. In a wide-ranging discussion, we talked about… Mar 27 23March 27, 2023Article at Angel on Authory
THE RETURN: Q&A with Dulce Maria Cardoso“I wanted to talk about a past towards which I felt a special responsibility: what happened could not be forgotten.” In 2016, MacLehose Press published THE RETURN, by Portuguese author Dulce Maria Cardoso, translated by me. A year later, at the time… Jul 01 17July 01, 2017Article at Angel on Authory
Taking tea with Nadine GordimerIn July 2007, South African Nobel laureate Nadine Gordimer was one of the main attractions at Latin America’s largest literary festival, the Festa Literária Internacional de Paraty (FLIP), in Brazil. I had been invited to chair her conversation with… Jul 21 14July 21, 2014Article at Prospect
Meeting Gabriel García MárquezAmong the countless possessions I have lost in my life, there is one whose loss rankles especially: a first edition of Doce Cuentos Peregrinos, a collection of short stories by Gabriel García Márquez (published in English as Strange Pilgrims). To… Apr 23 14April 23, 2014Article at Prospect
Barcelona, city of books: A literary hub built on rich history and skillsIn 1860, a former labourer from the Catalan provinces founded a publishing company in Barcelona. José Espasa, who had worked demolishing the old city walls, would go on to print Spain’s first encyclopedia. “From building to publishing: that has been… Mar 21 11March 21, 2011Article at Financial Times
Skins of the lion: An interview with Michael OndaatjeMichael Ondaatje’s fiction often grows out of an image. His most celebrated novel, The English Patient, for which he shared the 1992 Booker prize, had at its origin a vision of an aeroplane crashing into the desert. Who was in it, or why, was unclear… Sep 13 07September 13, 2007Article at Financial Times
Architect of optimism: An interview with Oscar NiemeyerCentenary years are a common excuse to celebrate an artist’s work. Centenary celebrations honouring artists who are still alive - and professionally active - are much rarer. Brazil’s most famous architect, Oscar Niemeyer, will turn 100 in December.… Apr 13 07April 13, 2007Article at Financial Times
Lunch with the FT: Vikram ChandraVikram Chandra’s only request for our lunch date is that we go somewhere that serves good steaks. We meet at The Gaucho Grill in Swallow Street, off Piccadilly, which is part of a chain of Argentine restaurants in London and seems to fit the brief.… Sep 08 06September 08, 2006Article at Financial Times
Voyage around the mother land: An interview with Colm Tóibín"Where are you from?” Colm Toibin asks in Spanish, before launching into an accurate impression of the typical Mexican singsong accent. My own ice-breaking gambit involves unwrapping a lemon-shaped soap: bright yellow and still fragrant, it is a… Sep 01 06September 01, 2006Article at Financial Times
‘Violence is absurd but is always there’: Guillermo ArriagaThere is a curious scene halfway through The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, the award-winning film written by Guillermo Arriaga starring, and directed by, Tommy Lee Jones. Pete Perkins, a taciturn Texan rancher played by Jones, has kidnapped… Apr 17 06April 17, 2006Article at Financial Times
'Enjoying a poem shouldn't be hard': An interview with US Poet Laureate Ted KooserFor someone holding the most conspicuous job a poet in the US could aspire to, Ted Kooser is unaffectedly low-key. Soft-spoken and self-deprecating, the 67-year-old was appointed poet laureate for a second consecutive term in April 2005, in the same… Jan 11 06January 11, 2006Article at Financial Times
Orhan Pamuk, The Art of Fiction No. 187 Orhan Pamuk was born in 1952 in Istanbul, where he continues to live. His family had made a fortune in railroad construction during the early days of the Turkish Republic and Pamuk attended Robert College, where the children of the city’s privileged… Oct 01 05October 01, 2005Article at The Paris Review
Lunch with the FT: Chico BuarqueI was told that Chico Buarque could not do lunch on a Monday. That is one of the three days a week when he joins the odd assortment of friends and fellow enthusiasts at a soccer field outside Rio de Janeiro. Chico (as he is familiarly referred to)… Sep 03 04September 03, 2004Article at Financial Times
An interview with Ciaran CarsonThis interview with Irish poet and novelist Ciaran Carson, previously unpublished, was conducted over email in 2002. A shortened version appeared in 2005 in the Barcelona-based literary journal, Lateral. ******** AG: Your fiction is mostly set… Jun 02 02June 02, 2002Article at Angel on Authory
DE ORIGENISMOS: Entrevista con Cintio Vitier (Spanish) A más de cincuenta años de la fundación de la revista Orígenes, los poetas que formaban su núcleo tienen una vigencia extraordiaria. -Más de la mitad de los poetas que hicimos la revista están en el otro mundo. Por fortuna, nosotros somos creyentes… Oct 05 97October 05, 1997Article at La Jornada
RECUERDO DE UNA NOVIA: Una visita a Dulce María Loynaz (Spanish)Arribar al ocaso: en la hora del crepúsculo habanero, en el atardecer de una vida. En las calles 19 y E del antiguo Vedado, las sombras empiezan a hacer su trabajo. Dentro y fuera de aquella casona magnífica, el tiempo se ha detenido sólo en… Jun 22 97June 22, 1997Article at La Jornada
Geometrías del Deseo: Entrevista con Alberto Ruy Sánchez (Spanish)El novelista Alberto Ruy Sánchez obtuvo el Premio Villaurrutia por Los nombres del aire y acaba de publicar En los labios del agua, segunda entrega del ciclo de novelas ubicadas en el puerto de Mogador. En esta conversación, el autor de Los demonios… Jul 01 96July 01, 1996Article at La Jornada
