Outsider Everywhere: Witold Gombrowicz in Argentina

Description:

A gripping portrait of Witold Gombrowicz, a literary figure on the margins who rose to prominence late in life to become 'one of the greatest novelists of our century' (Milan Kundera).

Brief description: Mercedes Halfon was born in Buenos Aires. She has published three novels, six poetry collections and one work of non-fiction. With Laura Citarella, she directed the film Las poetas visitan a Juana Bignozzi, which won the Best Director Award at the Mar del Plata International Film Festival and the Silver Dove Award at the DOK Leipzig Festival. She curated the theatrical cycle 'Invocaciones', held at the Centro Cultural San Martín and the Teatro Nacional Cervantes. She teaches in the Writing Arts program at the Universidad Nacional de las Artes and writes for the Radar supplement of the newspaper Página/12, among other outlets. Her most recent work is the literary biography Outsider Everywhere: Witold Gombrowicz in Argentina, her first book to appear in English. Mercedes Halfon is based in Buenos Aires.

Review Quotes:

'Writing about Gombrowicz poses a singular challenge for any biographer who chooses to write about him. Halfon takes it up admirably and manages to go beyond the life he lived and the way in which he constructed himself to get to the truth of his character.... A perfect portrayal.'
-- Martín Kohan, Revista Ñ

'One of the most interesting voices in contemporary literature.'
-- Pedro Mairal, author of The Woman from Uruguay

'With the sensitivity of a keen observer, Halfon speaks of herself when she speaks of the world, and vice versa.'
-- Alan Pauls, author of The Past

'Some authors seem to work by following the ellipses of a previously established canon. And there are others who seem to be guided by a sort of intuition, a pulse that is a mix of desire, desperation and fearlessness of the unknown. Mercedes Halfon belongs to the second category.'
-- Mauro Libertella

'Halfon's work achieves something that rarely happens in these types of biographical texts: it brings Gombrowicz back to life, makes him walk again through Buenos Aires, allows him to inhabit his everyday life.'
-- Imanol Subiela Salvo, Página/12

'A book that can almost be read in one sitting, where the reading revives the experiences of the Polish writer and makes us want to seek out all his work.'
-- Andrés Manrique, ANRed

'An atypical writer herself, as demonstrated by the subtle El trabajo de los ojos and Diario pinchado, Halfon does not sugarcoat the peculiarities or contradictions of her subject. Gombrowicz was a difficult man. Those seeking the origin of the myth will find it, but they will also find tools to think about literature, its behind-the-scenes world, and forms of consecration and circulation.'
-- Raquel Garzón, Cuadernos Hispanoamericanos