Mircea Cartarescu
Since this blog (thanks to its much more regularily updated Swedish sibling, of course) is placed remarkably high in the Google index I might as well use it, if not to gain friends, then at least to influence people.

For example, people are searching for Mircea Cartarescu, who (apart from what I think is a volume of poetry) doesn't seem to be translated into English [amazon.com]. He definitely should be! Since I read the Swedish translation of his story collection (or possibly novel) Nostalgia he's been a favourite of mine. Recently the first part of his trilogy Orbitor appeared in Swedish, partly on my recommendation, and I think it is even greater (if possibly not quite as charming) as Nostalgia. This "baroque autobiography" is partly reminiscent of South American magical realism (especially the more sinister strain of it, as represented by Ernesto Sabato), but set in Bucharest. While describing a personal history, and the history of modern Romania, it also integrates parts set outside the world or inside the brain, whichever you prefer. It is actually a bit megalomaniac in its attempt to present a "theory of everything" – i e, the world, thought, science, dreams, religion... –, but gets away with it remarkably well. Part sci-fi, part fantasy, part philosophy. Definitely a major work by a major writer. Do check him out. Nostalgia is at least translated into French and German. The first part of Orbitor at least into French, though apparantly that translation isn't as complete as the Swedish one. (As Cartarescu noted when I interviewed him a few years ago, publishers in market economies apply a censorship nearly as random as the one applied in communist Romania.)

Update: Good news! It seems that Nostalgia will appear in English during 2005, and an excerpt can be found here, along with another text, called Nabokov in Brasov. Some more info on Cartarescu in English here.
Malte P @ 9:54 AM |   |