THE CRYSTAL FRONTIER

New York City, NY: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1995. First Edition. First Printing.. Hardcover. As New/As New Dust Jacket.. New York City, NY: Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 1995. Hardcover. As New/As New. First Edition/First Printing. 266 pages. The author's collection of short stories. One of Carlos Fuentes' finest achievements. The first appearance of the title in English and in the United States. Precedes and should not be confused with all other subsequent editions. Published in a small and limited first print run as a hardcover original only. The First Edition is now scarce. Presents Carlos Funetes' "The Crystal Frontier" in a felicitous English translation. Nine stories that cumulatively add up to a brilliant novel. All concern people who have to do with the family of Leonardo Barroso, a powerful oligarch in Mexico with manifold connections to the United States. Recalls similar themes in Fuentes' masterpiece, "The Old Gringo", in its fervid examination of the uneasy and inseparable relations between Americans and Mexicans. Widely regarded as Mexico's man-of-letters, Fuentes was more erudite than most other Latin-American writers. Readers (including Roberto Bolano) who have read him in the original claim that his mastery of the Spanish language is next to none among Latin-American writers in its lucidity, elegance, and purity. He is highly regarded not just for his exquisite mastery of a very complex language, but also for his restless imagination and genuine wisdom. Carlos Fuentes died on May 15, 2012 at the age of 83. To his credit, President Felipe Calderon was one of the very first to announce and mourn his death, a gesture that would be completely unheard-of from any "patriotic" political leader in the United States, Democrat or Republican, especially when one considers that Fuentes was an unapologetic near-misanthrope and a vehement, ferocious, and despairing critic of his native Mexico. This fact is well-documented and includes, among other offensive behavior towards his fellow Mexicans, scolding and lashing out in public appearances at his adoring readers there. Still, Calderon was right to say that Fuentes' death was a loss to Mexico and to world literature. An absolute "must-have" title for Carlos Fuentes collectors. This title is a late-modern classic. This is one of few copies of the First Hardcover Edition/First Printing (American) still available online and is in especially fine condition: Clean, crisp, and bright. Please note: Copies available online have serious flaws, are subsequent printings, or are remainder-marked. This is surely an accessible and lovely alternative. A scarce copy thus. Winner of the Cervantes Prize in 1987, awarded to the greatest living writers in Spanish by the Spanish Government. One of the greatest writers of the 20th century. A fine copy. (SEE ALSO OTHER CARLOS FUENTES TITLES IN OUR CATALOG). ISBN 0374132771.