A Thousand Forests in One Acorn ― An Anthology of Spanish Language Fiction

A tremendous introduction to twenty-eight of the most influential Spanish-language authors of the twentieth century, A Thousand Forests in One Acorn combines interviews with these authors—about their influences, about what they're trying to accomplish with their writing (the "Acorn")—with each author's "favorite piece ever written" (the "Thousand Forests").

So, in addition to reading excerpts from Javier Marias's best works (Tomorrow in the Battle Think on Me, Dark Back of Time), you get to hear his reasons for why he thinks these are the best (the explanation for the bit from Tomorrow will change the way you read forever) and how his work as a translator (he translated Tristram Shandy into Spanish) has impacted his writing style.

Along with the Spanish-language authors who have already made a name for themselves in English—Carlos Fuentes, Mario Vargas Llosa, Enrique Vila-Matas, Ana Maria Matute—this collection includes a dozen authors never before translated into English. Authors like Elvio Gandolfo, whose story about a whale suddenly appearing over the town of Rosario ("I tried to make something impossible, at least in terms of the physical laws and limits we are bound by at this moment in science and history, plausible") is one of the many highlights of the volume.

Great for teaching and for anyone interested in Spanish-language literature as a whole, this is an indispensible anthology—one that will influence writers for decades to come.

Valerie Miles is the co-founder of Granta en espanol and was voted one of the "Most Influential Professionals in Publishing" at the 2013 Buenos Aires Book Fair.