Far from the preexisting models that deal with the realities of Latin America with a stark, apocalyptic realism or a trivial celebration of the exotic, this novel is radical support for literature devoted to writing, understood to mean the transformation of the everyday experience and as a reflection on the way in which personal, social, and historical stories are constructed. Through one voice constantly interrupted by many others, it tells the story of a man besieged by the need to reconstruct a vague memory from his ...
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Far from the preexisting models that deal with the realities of Latin America with a stark, apocalyptic realism or a trivial celebration of the exotic, this novel is radical support for literature devoted to writing, understood to mean the transformation of the everyday experience and as a reflection on the way in which personal, social, and historical stories are constructed. Through one voice constantly interrupted by many others, it tells the story of a man besieged by the need to reconstruct a vague memory from his childhood, while essential elements of his private life collapse with each passing day. The Strata is a machine created to reveal links between the most intimate personal experiences and political violence, which in the end turns the book into a philosophical exploration of the peculiar forms of desire typical of late capitalism in a society as unequal and contradictory as Colombia's in the beginning of the 21st century. The conflicts--civil or bloody, private or public--reach a raw and symbolic dimension, making readers think as much as feel and desire. Lejos de los modelos preestablecidos que abordan las realidades de Am�rica Latina desde el tremendismo apocal�ptico o la banal celebraci�n de lo ex�tico, esta novela es una apuesta radical por una literatura apegada a la escritura, entendida como la transformaci�n de la experiencia cotidiana y como reflexi�n sobre la manera en que se construyen los relatos personales, sociales e hist�ricos. A trav�s de una voz intervenida constantemente por muchas otras, cuenta la historia de un hombre asediado por la necesidad de reconstruir un recuerdo impreciso de su infancia, mientras los elementos esenciales de su vida privada se desmoronan con el paso de cada d�a. Los estratos es una m�quina creada para revelar v�nculos entre la experiencia personal m�s �ntima y la violencia pol�tica, lo que a la postre convierte el libro en una exploraci�n filos�fica de las particulares formas del deseo propias del capitalismo tard�o en una sociedad tan desigual y contradictoria como la colombiana de comienzos del siglo XXI. Los conflictos--civiles o sangrientos, privados o p�blicos--alcanzan una dimensi�n cruda y simb�lica, haciendo que el lector piense tanto como sienta y desee.
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