A revised edition of René's Flesh is on its way!
My thoroughly revised translation of René’s Flesh, Virgilio Piñera’s classic anti-bildungsroman, will be published by New York Review Books. The original translation has been out of print for over two decades. Just weeks before his death in 1979, Piñera finished fully revised his novel, which was originally published in 1952. My translation is based on this revised edition, published in 1985 in Spain by Alfaguara.
For information about my original 1989 translation, see below. For a detailed account of this book, its author, and the story of both, click on the “ABOUT THIS BOOK” button beneath the cover image.
René's Flesh
Virgilio Piñera (Cuba) – Eridanos Press/Marsilio Publishers – 1989
(out of print)
From reviews of René's Flesh
“His elegantly precise stories echo Kafka, Borges and Poe and evoke the architectural visions of Pranesi and the grotesques of Bosch.” – Stephan Salisbury, The New York Times Book Review
“Barely one month into this year, I’m not afraid to call René’s Flesh my discovery of 2021. If Rhinoceros and The Trial can be considered 20th century masterpieces, then so can René’s Flesh.” – Brad Bigelow, The Neglected Books Page