Synopsis:
Central concerns will be the rags to riches element of Garcia Marquez's story, the tension in his life between celebrity and literary quality, between politics and writing; and between power, solitude and love; the contrast between his Caribbean background and the gloomier authoritarianism of highland Bogota; and his conscious but nonetheless extraordinary turn away from Macondo, magical realism and "One Hundred Years of Solitude" after those interlinked phenomena had brought him fame and unimagined wealth. Martin is considered by Garcia Marquez to be his 'official' biographer and he has met the novelist and conducted interviews with him at regular intervals throughout the 15-year research period.He has also interviewed at least 300 other persons, including Fidel Castro, Felipe Gonzalez, several presidents of Colombia, writers like Carlos Fuentes, Mario Vargas Llosa and Alvaro Mutis, the author's wife and sons, his mother, his brothers and sisters, his literary agent and translators, and most of his best friends and professional collaborators (as well as some detractors). This biography is not only based on Martin's unique experience of Garcia Marquez and his milieux over the last two decades but also on a wealth of sources, which it will be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for any other biographer to replicate.
Review:
`...now, thankfully, we have this monumental work'
-- Financial Times
`Gerald Martin has done a good job here in presenting the myths about the career, as well as debunking many of them ... a good, thorough job.' -- Philip Hensher, Spectator
`His biography...has been 17 years in the making, and he has no regrets about squandered time ... consistently engaging' -- The Times
`Martin blends the stories and novels superbly into his narrative ... and helps readers to ground his exceptional fiction in history.' -- Jason Wilson, Independent
`Masterful ... Martin's book...is an astonishing feat: a subtle tribute to a very complex man and an indispensable key to his life's work' -- Sunday Telegraph
`Superbly well-researched ... Garcia Marquez's achievement is more than purely artistic. He has become a hero in the long, still continuing story of how the West has been obliged to change its view of the post-colonial nations.' -- Kevin Jackson, Sunday Times
`We already have his novels. And now, thankfully, we have this monumental work.' -- Angel Gurria Quintana, Financial Times
`Wonderfully readable.'
-- Boyd Tonkin, Independent, 'The Week in Books'
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