The Complete Memoirs

June 1, 2021
The memoirs of Pablo Neruda (1904-73), the great Chilean poet and Nobel laureate, first translated into English in 1977, have been newly expanded here in subtle and significant ways with the addition of previously unpublished or incomplete manuscripts, explanatory editorial notes, and an instructive chronology. Composed as a series of interconnected reflections rather than an exhaustive autobiography, Neruda's vignettes meander through a range of experiences, from his childhood and early success in poetry to political appointments and international sojourns while always including reflections on his art and craft. Often admired for his pithy odes and striking images, Neruda borders on verbosity in prose, but his characteristic brilliance and larger-than-life persona propel each chapter forward. The notes provide crucial context, and one particularly important inclusion addresses the sexuality of Federico Garc�a Lorca, initially excluded for fear of reprisals against the Spanish writer's life and reputation. This greatly improved edition will appeal to Neruda completists and aficionados, and it will serve as a fascinating entry point for anyone interested in a firsthand look at the raw material of this legendary poet's life.

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May 1, 2021
The Nobel Prize-winning poet's memoirs, newly expanded. Nearly 50 years after the posthumous publication of the memoir of Chilean poet Pablo Neruda (1904-1973), translators St. Martin and West offer a new edition, adding 19 sections of material from lectures, travel notes, and hitherto lost, unfinished, or unpublished fragments, along with editorial notes about where the material was found and why it was included. In addition, the translators have appended a detailed chronology of Neruda's life. Some additions are brief, including "the only known version in writing of this phrase: 'What is my poetry? I don't know. It would be easier to ask my poetry who am I.' " But other new material offers salient insights: for example, a chapter on Federico Garc�a Lorca's "intimate disposition," which Neruda omitted from his original manuscript because he feared that prejudice about homosexuality would compromise the prestige of a poet he loved and admired. Lorca, Neruda wrote, "emanated a splendid intelligence the way a precious stone refracts rays of light." Neruda was certain that Lorca was murdered by fascists in Spain, who, "as in Germany and Italy, specialized in the extermination of intellectuals." Another new piece reflects on religion, which Neruda rejected even as a child, rebelling "against this always invisible kingdom and against the strange proceedings of the assorted gods." The fresh material is skillfully woven into the original memoir, which Neruda called his "journey around myself," with evocations of his family and childhood, global travels, friends and foes, carnal desires, aspirations and achievements as a poet, and celebration of the natural world, which "made me euphoric." Overall, the selections round out Neruda's image as a poet who strived "to denounce what contributes to backwardness and lift up the hopes, open the possibilities, increase the joy of the human race." A final editorial note presents a helpful list of the "texts added to this edition." Emendations that contribute to a nuanced portrait of a complex man.

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