Until August Explained

Until August
Title Orig:En agosto nos vemos
Translator:Anne McLean
Author:Gabriel García Márquez
Country:Colombia
Language:Spanish
Publisher:Random House
Release Date:6 March 2024
Pages:150

Until August is a novel by Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez published posthumously in March 2024.[1] It was released on the 97th anniversary of his birth, 6 March.

Background

Until August was originally planned to be a collection of four stories.[2] García Márquez had worked on the novel at least since 1997. In September of that year he read portions of Until August out loud at Georgetown University.[3] However, he put aside work on the novel to work on Memories of My Melancholy Whores. In 2004, he commented that he felt satisfied with the development of the protagonist, but did not feel satisfied with the version of the novel he had written.[4] He never completed the novel. Towards the end of his life, he began to suffer from dementia. Due to his memory issues, he could no longer follow the plot of the novel, and therefore could not complete it. The manuscript of the novel was placed in an archive at Ransom Center after García Márquez's death. Originally, his family decided not to publish the incomplete novel.[5] However, in 2022, his sons re-read the drafts of the novel, of which there were five. Although García Márquez had requested that his sons ensure the destruction of the novel, they found literary worth in the novel, and chose to edit and release it, stating "We did think about it for about three seconds - was it a betrayal to my parents, to my father's [wishes]? And we decided, yes, it was a betrayal. But that's what children are for".[6] The publication of Until August was announced in April 2023.[7] According to his sons, this will be the final García Márquez work published, as there is nothing else left in his archive. The choice of his sons to publish the novel against the wishes of their father was met with criticism.[8] [9]

Summary

Ana Magdalena Bach lives happily with her husband of 27 years. Despite this, she takes a ferry every August to the island where her mother is buried, and every August takes a new lover.

It is the first and only novel by García Márquez to be centered on a female protagonist.[6] [10]

Reception

The publication of a posthumous novel by García Márquez was met with great anticipation.[3] [11] Over 250 thousand copies were preordered in Latin America,[12] and in Colombia, the book was the third most sold novel by bookseller Librería Nacional in the week before its release.[13] The Torre Colpatria in Bogotá lit up to commemorate the publication of the novel.[14] [15]

The novel received mixed reviews. A negative review for the New York Times called Until August an "unsatisfying goodbye".[16] Lucy Hughes-Hallett gave a negative review of the novel for The Guardian, criticizing the prose style, structure, and inconsistencies; conversely, Anthony Cummins, also writing for The Guardian, called the novel "better than [García Márquez] had feared".[17] [18] A review for El País wrote that the novel "had virtues", but that it could not live up to García Márquez's best work.[19]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Gabriel García Márquez's last novel is published against his wishes . 6 March 2024 . Kahn . Carrie . . 6 March 2024 . 6 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240306195846/https://www.npr.org/2024/03/06/1236246186/gabriel-garcia-marquez-novel-until-august-published/ . live .
  2. News: Mora . Rosa . García Márquez regresa con una historia de amor . García Márquez returns with a story of love . 12 March 2024 . El País . 20 October 2004 . Sigue trabajando en sus memorias y tiene también en cartera En agosto nos vemos, una serie de cuatro cuentos. . es . 12 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240312145149/https://elpais.com/diario/2004/10/20/cultura/1098223201_850215.html . live .
  3. News: Martínez Polo . Liliana . Gabriel García Márquez, el hombre que fue agosto . 12 March 2024 . El Tiempo . 3 March 2024 . spanish . 12 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240312151110/https://www.eltiempo.com/cultura/musica-y-libros/gabriel-garcia-marquez-el-hombre-que-fue-agosto-860781 . live .
  4. News: Colchen . Gabrielle . "En agosto nos vemos": una novela inédita de Gabriel García Márquez será publicada en 2024 . "Until August": an unpublished novel by Gabriel García Márquez will be published in 2024 . 12 March 2024 . France 24 . 28 April 2023 . 12 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240312152146/https://www.france24.com/es/cultura/20230428-en-agosto-nos-vemos-una-novela-in%C3%A9dita-de-gabriel-garc%C3%ADa-m%C3%A1rquez-ser%C3%A1-publicada-en-2024 . live .
  5. News: Taylor . Luke . Unseen Gabriel García Márquez novel to be published next year . 12 March 2024 . The Guardian . 28 April 2023 . 6 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240306080757/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/apr/28/gabriel-garcia-marquez-unseen-novel-en-agosto-nos-vemos . live .
  6. News: Rufo . Yasmin . Gabriel García Márquez: Sons publish last novel that late author wanted destroyed . . 12 March 2024 . 6 March 2024 . 8 March 2024 . https://archive.today/20240308104808/https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-68488756 . live .
  7. News: González Fornés . Nora . An unpublished novel by García Márquez set to be released in 2024 . 12 March 2024 . EL PAÍS English . 28 April 2023 . en-us . 12 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240312155713/https://english.elpais.com/culture/2023-04-28/an-unpublished-novel-by-garcia-marquez-set-to-be-released-in-2024.html . live .
  8. News: Alter . Alexandra . Gabriel García Márquez Wanted to Destroy His Last Novel. It's About to Be Published. . 11 March 2024 . The New York Times . 6 March 2024 . 11 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240311191520/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/06/books/gabriel-garcia-marquez-last-novel-until-august.html?action=click&pgtype=Article&state=default&module=styln-books-general&variant=show&region=BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT&block=storyline_flex_guide_recirc . live .
  9. News: Clark . Alex . 'An act of betrayal': Gabriel García Márquez's son on publishing his father's work against his will . 11 March 2024 . The Guardian . 8 March 2024 . 11 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240311212934/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/mar/08/gabriel-garcia-marquez-son-publishing-fathers-work-until-august . live .
  10. Dorfman . Ariel . Ariel Dorfman . Clamoring for Life . . 30 July 2024 . 9 May 2024 .
  11. News: Liu . Max . Gabriel García Márquez was right not to want his final novel published . 12 March 2024 . . 6 March 2024 . en . 11 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240311223540/https://inews.co.uk/culture/books/gabriel-garcia-marquez-until-august-review-2936028 . live .
  12. News: Hoyos . Andrés . 'En agosto nos vemos' y los mejores secretos de cama de Gabriel García Márquez . "Until August" and the best secrets from the bed of Gabriel García Márquez . 12 March 2024 . . 8 March 2024 . spanish . 12 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240312150832/https://www.eltiempo.com/cultura/en-agosto-nos-vemos-garcia-marquez-y-sus-mejores-secretos-de-cama-3322805 . live .
  13. News: Hoyos . Andrés . 'En agosto nos vemos': así se está moviendo el nuevo libro de Gabo en las librerías . 12 March 2024 . El Tiempo . 6 March 2024 . spanish . 12 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240312044203/https://www.eltiempo.com/cultura/musica-y-libros/en-agosto-nos-vemos-asi-se-esta-moviendo-el-nuevo-libro-de-gabo-en-las-librerias-3322136 . live .
  14. News: Alarcón Vargas . Laura Daniela . Imágenes alusivas a la novela inédita de Gabo iluminan la Torre Colpatria de Bogotá . Images from the unpublished novel by Gabo illuminate the Torre Colpatria of Bogotá . 12 March 2024 . El Tiempo . 6 March 2024 . spanish . 12 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240312154432/https://www.eltiempo.com/bogota/imagenes-alusivas-a-la-novela-inedita-de-gabo-iluminan-la-torre-colpatria-de-bogota-3321955 . live .
  15. News: La Torre Colpatria se iluminó en honor a Gabriel García Márquez . The Torre Colpatria was illuminated in honor of Gabriel García Márquez . 12 March 2024 . . 6 March 2024 . spanish . 12 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240312153210/https://www.elespectador.com/el-magazin-cultural/la-torre-colpatria-se-ilumino-en-honor-a-gabriel-garcia-marquez/ . live .
  16. News: Greenberg . Michael . Gabriel García Márquez's Last Book Is an Unsatisfying Goodbye . 11 March 2024 . The New York Times . 10 March 2024 . 10 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240310115512/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/10/books/review/gabriel-garcia-marquez-until-august.html . live .
  17. News: Hughes-Hallett . Lucy . Lucy Hughes-Hallett . Until August by Gabriel García Márquez review – a 'lost' last novel . 11 March 2024 . The Guardian . 6 March 2024 . 11 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240311104845/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/mar/06/until-august-by-gabriel-garcia-marquez-review-a-lost-last-novel . live .
  18. News: Cummins . Anthony . Until August by Gabriel García Márquez review – his abandoned last novel . 11 March 2024 . The Guardian . 10 March 2024 . 10 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240310073159/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/mar/10/until-august-by-gabriel-garcia-marquez-review-a-gently-diverting-posthumous-novel-in-a-minor-key . live .
  19. News: Suau . Nadal . 'En agosto nos vemos', la novela inédita de Gabriel García Márquez: un libro pequeño, leve, legítimo . 11 March 2024 . El País . 6 March 2024 . es . 10 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240310154338/https://elpais.com/babelia/2024-03-06/en-agosto-nos-vemos-de-gabriel-garcia-marquez-un-libro-pequeno-leve-legitimo.html . live .

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