Quixote at 400

Becoming, not being, is what the novel as an art form is all about. And that is why we regard Don Quixote as the first modern fictional hero. More

Quixote at 400

We may have our own personal opinions of an average writer, but in front of Don Quixote, we are all interchangeable. Conscripts of fate line up in front of… More

International Noir

Noir is commonly thought of as an American genre, if it’s in fact a genre. The films “noir” was first used to describe back in the 1940s were American;… More

Quixote at 400

You may imagine the boss as the President, the General Secretary, the Chief of Army, the boss of your marriage or of your building, whatever you think. You immediately… More

Natsuo Kirino: International Noir

"International Noir: Breaking Out of Crime Time" appears in PEN America 7: World Voices. This talk was presented, in slightly different form, at the 2005 PEN World Voices Festival of… More

Quixote at 400

In any case, since the book is supposed to be real, it follows that the story has to be written by an eyewitness to the events that take place… More

International Noir

The first thing I ever knew about Simenon was that he’d written an entire novel while enclosed in a glass booth in full view of the public. I heard… More

Quixote at 400

Actually, Don Quixote was published in the same year as the story of that other mad old man, King Lear, so it was a great year for mad old… More

How Should One Read a Book?

In the first place, I want to emphasize the note of interrogation at the end of my title. Even if I could answer the question for myself, the answer… More

Love and Revolution

People sometimes talk about Neruda as two different poets: the poet of politics and revolution, and the poet of love or romance. He is actually both at the same… More