It turned out to be good advice because this slender work, my fifth and last pick of the 17 books i read during women in translation month, is a roller coaster. Lina meruanes seeing red is not exactly autofiction, even though the narrator is a chilean writer named lina meruane, and the narrative is a fictionalized maturation of an event in the authors own life. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Lina meruane lina meruane is one of the most prominent female voices in chilean contemporary literature.
Meruane intelligently undermines the stereotype and allows her heroines personality to be entirely dominated by her desire to regain her sight. It is a raw, sexy, visceral and sometimes brutal account of a. Meruane also explores to what extent sighted people dont actually use their vision. Her novels main character, also named lina meruane, is based on the author, also being an author having serious problems with her vision. Lina meruane is a chilean writer and scholar who teaches latin american cultures, arts and cultures in the core program and has taught a senior seminar entitled pathological citizenship at the global liberal studies program. Shes been the recipient of grants from both the guggenheim foundation and the national endowment for the arts. Aug 20, 2016 seeing red, published by deep vellum, is available at a discount through august 31, 2016, in celebration of women in translation month.
Like its author, the books blind narrator is a chilean writer called lina meruane, who lives in new york with her spanish partner, ignacio. Professor lina meruanes novel, seeing red, receives uk. Blending fiction and autobiography, meruane s powerfully disquieting novel follows a young chilean writer and graduate student as she grows increasingly blind. Lina meruane s seeing red is a remarkable autobiographical novel about blindness the author appears at powells books on hawthorne may 23, 2016. Lina meruane boza born 1970 is a chilean writer and professor. Lina meruane is an awardwinning chilean writer and scholar, teaching at new york university. The effect of blindness on the whole body is at the forefront of seeing red, lina meruane s englishlanguage debut. Lina meruanes semiautobiographical seeing red is full of rhythmical jolts. Meruanes novel plunges into the dark recesses of the psyche, the unruly and ugly feelings that take over when the body is threatened with its own betrayal. Lina meruane is a contemporary chilean writer, part of the new generation of authors redefining the latin american literary scene. Seeing red explores senses other than sight of course. However, the sad truth is that i always approach ereading with a shudder, prioritising books from the shelves over.
Lina, the author, writes as a means of cautery and brings an ending that it is also the beginning of an eye for an eye. Seeing red is an intriguing blend of fact and fiction where it is impossible to know how much of the narrative actually happened to lina meruane, the author, and how much has been imagined for lina meruane, the fictional character. According to her, this stroke was inevitable and doctors forewarned her of this fate. Multiple international awardwinning chileanauthor lina meruane. Based on her own personal experience, meruane s realistic portrayal of a womans journey of loss, dependency and adaptation is both harrowing and intense and explores the limits of family, human nature and identity. Lina meruanes seeing red is a remarkable autobiographical. The book opens when lucina, lina, a young chilean writer. Written by chilean writer lina meruane and translated by megan mcdowell, seeing red has a complex relationship with autobiography.
Lina meruane is one of the most prominent and influential female voices in chilean contemporary literature. The prize was awarded to its translator, megan mcdowell. Read seeing red by lina meruane available from rakuten kobo. Also by lina meruane see all books by lina meruane. When she was a phd student at nyu, chilean author lina meruane was temporarily struck blind as her eyes haemorrhaged and blood flooded her vision. Lina s at edinburgh international book festival on 26th august writing this in tearing haste, as the saying goes, but with the strong recommendation that you read this energetic, gripping novel by one of the. Her semiautobiographical novel seeing red, set in contrastingly chaotic new york and santiago, spins off from that episode in a searing examination of illness and recovery, anger, dependency, unconditional love and identity. If you love lidia like i do, youll adore lina meruane. Lina meruane is one of the most prominent female voices in chilean contemporary narrative. Jan 01, 2012 seeing red was written by lina meruane in spanish in 2012 and translated by megan mcdowell in 2016. Seeing red, by chilean writer lina meruane, is an exemplary autobiographical novel. Lina begins to speak in terms of sound, scent or touch as she becomes more fluent in translating these senses into her new sight.
Apr 08, 2016 linas blindness, after all, changes the workings of not just her body, but of her mind too. Seeing red ebook by lina meruane 9781941920251 rakuten kobo. Lina meruanes title seems to have a double meaning. There are times reading lina meruane s semiautobiographical novel seeing red when you want to look away. The reader will walk on these pages as if blind, surrounded by sharp objects that inflict pain, nostalgia, loneliness it comes to life with a strong and beautiful translation by megan mcdowell, who renders and magnifies lina meruane. A novelist, essayist and cultural journalist, she is the author of numerous short stories that have appeared in various anthologies and magazines in spanish, english, german and french. Seeing red, published by deep vellum, is available at a discount through august 31, 2016, in celebration of women in translation month. I discovered lina meruanes seeing red when i stopped by at the bookshop a few days back. Meruane, who teaches at new york university, tells the traumatic story of lucina, a chilean writer also living in new york. Save up to 80% by choosing the etextbook option for isbn. In the second half of lina meruanes astonishing novel seeing red, the protagonist, lina, lies in the operating room awaiting eye surgery to treat blindness caused by diabetic retinopathy.
Lina meruanes autobiographical novel seeing red begins with the moment she lost her vision, when a blood vessel burst in her eye and her sight came into focus. Seeing red was originally published in spanish and it comes to life with a strong and beautiful translation by megan mcdowell, who is able to render and magnify lina meruane. Mcdowells translation emboldens the intensity and lyricism of meruanes visceral prose, littered with sensory details and savory descriptions of the smells and sounds surrounding lina as her. Seeing red 9781941920244, 9781941920251 vitalsource. She travels to santiago to visit family and refuses to see a doctor there. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading seeing red. It is a raw, sexy, visceral and sometimes brutal account of a woman losing her sight and. Meruane has received writing grants from the arts development fund of chile 1997, the guggenheim foundation 2004 and national endowment for the arts 2010. Mcdowells translation, from deep vellum publishing, is the first work of meruanes to appear in english. But seeing red is also the first book ive considered reading in its native spanish. This powerful autobiographical novel describes a young chilean writer recently relocated to new york for doctoral work who suffers a stroke, leaving her blind. Back in new york, shes told her eye is still bad and may never heal. It turned out to be good advice because this slender work, my fifth and last pick of the 17 books i read during women in. Her work, written in spanish, has been translated into english, italian, portuguese, german, and french.
Author lina meruanes seeing red tests family bonds through crisis and blindness. I found it interesting that this is the third book translated by mcdowell that i have read this month. Meruanes first novel translated into english explores mortality, identity, and personal transformation. The stroke leaves her vision damaged, and the rest of seeing red, translated from the spanish by megan. Aug 30, 2017 there are times reading lina meruanes semiautobiographical novel seeing red when you want to look away. At a party in new york city, the main character, lina, suffers from a stroke, which. Seeing red is not only a story about becoming blind, it is a story about fear, trust, and the limits of love. Ive been reading another great volume in their catalogue. Lina meruanes novel dissecting the impact on a young academic of going blind is brilliant and heartbreaking, writes kirsty mcluckie.
This intriguing short novel by chilean writer meruane is her first to be translated into english. She currently lives in new york city and seeing red is her first novel to be translated into english. Shifting between new york city and santiago, between the world of sight and blindness, seeing red is a masterclass in taut and poetic storytelling. At a party in new york city, the main character, lina, suffers from a stroke. Apr 22, 2016 in the second half of lina meruanes astonishing novel seeing red, the protagonist, lina, lies in the operating room awaiting eye surgery to treat blindness caused by diabetic retinopathy. She was quite literally seeing red because of bleeding into her eyes that was slowly making her go blind. Fiction books selectiona penetrating autobiographical novel. At times, the reader is thrown to the end of a sentence, where she unexpectedly stops and. While at a friends party in new york, aforementioned narrator lina suffers a mild stroke that leaves her completely blind in one eye and partially blind in the other. With propulsive language and hallucinatory verve, lina meruane explores the relationship between identity and illness. Seeing red was written by lina meruane in spanish in 2012 and translated by megan mcdowell in 2016. Sep 24, 2017 my first book from deep vellum publishing texas was the terrific the art of flight by mexican diplomat sergio pitol posted in august, 2016. At a party in new york city, the main character, lina, suffers from a stroke, which causes the blood vessels behind her corneas to burst. Fictional lina gets to be selfish, powerful, and monstrous in ways that meruane likely never did.
It is a raw, sexy, visceral and sometimes brutal account of a woman losing her sight and it. Seeing red is a short, autobiographical novel by lina meruane that begins with a bang and doesnt let up. Seeing red kindle edition by lina meruane, megan mcdowell. Mcdowells translation, from deep vellum publishing, is the first work of meruane s to appear in english. Lina meruanes seeing red is a piercing novel of blindness. Seeing red is the story of lina whose worst nightmare happens at a party one night.
Aug 03, 2017 seeing red is an intriguing blend of fact and fiction where it is impossible to know how much of the narrative actually happened to lina meruane, the author, and how much has been imagined for lina meruane, the fictional character. Blood, as she recognizes at the outset of this novelinfragments, turns horrendous only when the fascination with it ends, when its unexpected appearance remains past its anxious welcome. The cover grabbed my attention and refused to let me go. Seeing red, by lina meruane lina meruane s novel dissecting the impact on a young academic of going blind is brilliant and heartbreaking, writes kirsty mcluckie. Seeing red is a masterclass in taut, visceral storytelling. Seeing red by lina meruane and publisher deep vellum publishing. Seeing red raises difficult questions about the line between love, pity, and sacrifice. Seeing red s spine is a deliciously perverse love story, loaded with surprising, sickening, wonderful erotic material centred in the eyeballs. In the second half of lina meruane s astonishing novel seeing red, the protagonist, lina, lies in the operating room awaiting eye surgery to treat blindness caused by diabetic retinopathy. Seeing red, by lina meruane, translated by megan mcdowell deep vellum publishing, february 2016 170 pages deep vellum publishing amazon they say that when you go blind your other senses become magnified. May 14, 2016 reading lina meruanes seeing red while disabled.
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