Current:Home > InvestCritics slam posthumous Gabriel García Márquez book published by sons against his wishes -TradeGrid
Critics slam posthumous Gabriel García Márquez book published by sons against his wishes
View
Date:2025-04-16 15:38:44
Gabriel García Márquez has a posthumous book coming out 10 years after his death. But he wouldn't have ́aMáwanted it that way.
García Márquez's final book "Until August" is set for release on March 12, but the author explicitly told his sons he didn't want the work published.
"He told me directly that the novel had to be destroyed," the author's younger son Gonzalo García Barcha told The New York Times. His eldest son, Rodrigo García, said his dad "lost the ability to judge the book."
In the New York Times piece, the brothers say they helped publish "Until August" because it lifts the veil on a new side to their father, who centered the book around a female protagonist for the first time. However, García told the outlet that he and his brother "were worried of course to be seen as simply greedy."
"Until August" follows a happily married woman Ana Magdalena Bach, who travels every August by a ferry to an island where her mom is buried to find another love for just one night.
Check out: USA TODAY's weekly Best-selling Booklist
García Márquez, one of the most popular Spanish-language writers ever, died in 2014 in Mexico City at the age of 87. His book "100 Years of Solitude" sold over 50 million copies, which is a mammoth feat in the literary world.
Author Gabriel García Márquez diesat 87
Oprah Winfrey chose his books twice for her original book club, "100 Years of Solitude" in 2004 and "Love in the Time of Cholera" in 2007, a rare occurrence for the media mogul.
It seems that his new work won't receive the same fate. Critics are slamming "Until August," which spans just 144 pages, in early reviews.
Harsh reviews for Gabriel García Márquez's new book: 'a faded souvenir'
"Until August" has yielded harsh reactions from several publications.
In a review of the book for British outlet i News, author Max Lui wrote, "The story ends so abruptly that it is obvious that it is unfinished" and called out the author's family and publishers for disrespecting his wishes.
"Usually, in a review of an underwhelming posthumous publication or minor work by a major author, it is worth saying that, despite its flaws, it will delight devoted fans. I do not believe that is true of 'Until August.' Márquez knew this and was right not to want it to see the light of day," Liu wrote.
Lucy Hughes-Hallett called the Latin American author's last novel was "not good writing" and "like a faded souvenir" for The Guardian.
"So should it have been published? There are small errors of continuity. The structure is ungainly. More importantly, the prose is often dismayingly banal, its syntax imprecise," she wrote.
While writer David Mills in a review for The Times agreed with similar critiques, he seemed to enjoy the book.
"Yet, for all these faults, 'Until August' is recognizably a Garcia Marquez novel: inventively enjoyable and working to its surprising, pleasing ending. I read it straight through in one sitting, then got up the next day and did it again," Mills wrote.
veryGood! (93787)
Related
- The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Twist of Fate
- Oklahoma State to wear QR codes on helmets to assist NIL fundraising
- Michael Oher, Subject of The Blind Side, Speaks Out on Lawsuit Against Tuohy Family
- Why members of two of EPA's influential science advisory committees were let go
- Georgia election board approves new rules that critics fear could allow certification delays
- These Best All-Inclusive Resorts Make Girls’ Trip Planning as Fun as the Vacay
- Fantasy football draft cheat sheet: Top players for 2024, ranked by position
- The Daily Money: Spending more on holiday travel?
- Phil Donahue, who ruled daytime talk for years until Oprah overtook him, left a lasting imprint
Ranking
- The city of Chicago is ordered to pay nearly $80M for a police chase that killed a 10
- PHOTO COLLECTION: DNC Preparations
- 50 years on, Harlem Week shows how a New York City neighborhood went from crisis to renaissance
- Arizona woman wins $1 million ordering lottery ticket on her phone, nearly wins Powerball
- Nevada attorney general revives 2020 fake electors case
- Bobby Bones Reacts to Julianne Hough Disagreeing With Dancing With the Stars Win
- Hunter in Alaska recovering after being mauled by bear and shot amid effort to fend it off
- Bobby Bones Reacts to Julianne Hough Disagreeing With Dancing With the Stars Win
Recommendation
What do we know about the mysterious drones reported flying over New Jersey?
How many points did Caitlin Clark score today? Star shatters WNBA rookie assist record
Louisiana is investigating a gas pipeline explosion that killed a man
Arizona woman wins $1 million ordering lottery ticket on her phone, nearly wins Powerball
2 killed, 3 injured in shooting at makeshift club in Houston
Powerball winning numbers for August 17 drawing: Jackpot rises to $35 million
3 things to do if you're worried about having too little saved for retirement
Ex-officer convicted in George Floyd’s killing is moved to new prison months after stabbing