By Pablo Martín Sánchez
Translated by Jeffrey Diteman
The thrilling English-language debut from the first Spanish member of the Oulipo, a riveting historical novel exploring the tumultuous life of an anarchist in 1920s Spain.
Publication Date: December 4, 2018
Paperback: 9781941920718
eBook: 9781941920725
Description
When Pablo Martín Sánchez discovers that he shares his name with a Spanish anarchist who was executed in 1924 for the attempted overthrow of Primo de Rivera’s dictatorship, he sets out to reconstruct his life story. Through references to key events in Europe’s history, including the sinking of the Titanic and the Battle of Verdun, and the influence of intellectuals such as Miguel de Unamuno and Victor Blasco Ibañez, The Anarchist Who Shared My Name elegantly captures the life of a man who sought to resist political injustice and paid the ultimate price for his protest. Martín Sánchez’s thrilling tale is the unsettling chronicle of a dark chapter in Spanish history, as courageous as it is timely.
Biographical Note
Pablo Martín Sánchez was born in Reus, Spain in 1977. He graduated from the Institut del Teatre de Barcelona with a degree in Dramatic Art and from the University of Barcelona with a degree in Literary Theory and Comparative Literature. He received a Master’s degree in Humanities from the Carlos III University of Madrid and a Ph.D. in French Language and Literature from the University of Lille-3 as well as a Ph.D. in Literary Theory and Art and Comparative Literature from the University of Granada. He is the author of a collection of short stories, Fricciones (E.D.A. Libros, 2011), and two novels, The Anarchist Who Shared My Name (El anarquista que se llamaba como yo) and Tuyo es el mañana (Acantilado, 2016). In addition, he has translated the works of authors such as Alfred Jarry, Raymond Queneau, and Wajdi Mouawad, and teaches writing at the Ateneu School of Writing of Barcelona. In 2014 he was invited to join the Oulipo and is currently the only Spanish member of the group.
Jeff Diteman is a writer, artist, and translator from the French, Spanish, and Italian. He is currently studying for his Ph.D. Comparative Literature at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. His writings and translations have been featured in Drunken Boat, The Missing Slate, Nailed Magazine, and Inventory.
Reviews
One of EuropeNow's "Best Translations of 2018"
"The novel is so skillfully written and constructed that it kept me turning its pages with eager fascination." —Willard Manus, Lively Arts
“It reads faster than you’d expect, and has the same compelling sort of plot-driven narrative as a great Dickens novel. Also, there are anarchists and revolution and when are those things not fun to read about? All historical names and contexts are explained in non-pedantic ways that give the average reader all the necessary information re: Spain pre-World War II.” —Chad Post, Three Percent
“Martín Sánchez gives a good picture of the Spanish-émigré scene in Paris and the revolutionary ambitions -- including the role of Blasco Ibáñez -- as well as the anarchist scene of the early twentieth century more generally… an impressive picture of the Spain (and the exiled-Spaniards) situation of those years." —The Complete Review
“A fascinating immersion into historical documentation and imagined history.” —Tobias Carroll, Words Without Borders