Margarita, How Beautiful the Sea

by Ramirez, Sergio; Miller, Michael

• ISBN13: 9781880684849
• ISBN10: 1880684845
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-05-30
• Publisher: Northwestern Univ Pr

Summary

1907. Leon, Nicaragua. During a tribute which he delivers during his triumphal return to his native city, Ruben Dario writes on the fan of a little girl one of his most famous poems, "Margarita, How Beautiful the Sea." 1956. In a cafe in Leon, a group of literati gather, dedicated, among other things, to the rigorous reconstruction of the legend surrounding Dario-but also to conspire. The dictator Anastasio Somoza is visiting the city, accompanied by his wife, Dona Salvadorita. A banquet of pomp and splendor is being planned. There will be an attempt against the dictator's life, and that little girl with the fan from a half-century before, will not be a disinterested party. In Margarita, How Beautiful the Sea, Sergio Ramirez encompasses, in a complete metaphor of reality and legend, the entire history of his country. The narrative moves along paths 50 years apart, which inevitably converge. The story becomes a fascinating exercise on the power of memory, on the influence of the past, fictitious or not, in the finality of reality. "A total novel about the secret mysteries of science, of poetry and of dictatorships. The beauties of Ruben Dario and the horrors of Somoza intertwine in an unforgettable and absorbing story."-Tomas Eloy Martinez Author of six books of fiction, Sergio Ramirez was born in Masatepe, Nicaragua in 1942. As a student in the 1950s, he worked for social change, co-founded the literary journal Ventana, and later became a member of the "Group of Twelve," intellectual supporters of the Sandinista movement. He was vice president of Nicaragua during the Sandinista regime. During 2000, Mr. Ramirez was writer-in-residence at the University of Maryland. He is the recipient of numerous honors, including the Ordre du Chevalier des Artes et Lettres in France.