"He is so eclectic and heretical, that he reconciles us all in a theosophically cosmic and monistic synthesis" - José Carlos Mariátegui.
Originally published in Perú in 1928 to great acclaim, The Cardboard House was clearly destined to become a classic. Written during Martín Adán's prodigious adolescence in Barranco -a peaceful sea resort in the coast of Lima-, The Cardboard House is a novel of visionary excursion through the crevices of sensation and memory, moving in a fluid poetic exploration that traverses swiftly from the social to the cosmic. Martín Adán's experimental style has been admired and celebrated by authors as diverse as Mario Vargas Llosa, Allen Ginsberg and Roberto Bolaño; and The Cardboard House stands out in history as a major statement of the avant-garde movements in Latin America.
This new English translation strives to preserve the experimental style of The Cardboard House in its original Spanish language, and intends to reestablish its importance as one of the crucial texts of the Latin American literary avant-garde.
Martín Adán (Lima, 1908 - 1985), pseudonym of Ramón Rafael de la Fuente Benavides, was a Peruvian poet and writer whose body of work is notable for its experimentalism and metaphysical depth. His breakthrough novel, The Cardboard House, redefined the possibilities of narrative for his contemporaries and has remained a substantial influence for several generations of Latin American writers. He is one of the most celebrated Peruvian poets of the 20th century. His work in poetry was twice awarded the National Poetry Prize (Perú, 1946, 1961) and the Peruvian National Literature Prize in 1976.
José Garay Boszeta (Lima, 1985) is a writer, translator and language laborer, born and raised in Lima, Perú. He studied programs in Economics and Philosophy at the National University of San Marcos in Lima. His work in translation aims to reevaluate Latin American narratives and restore their historical content for English speaking audiences around the world. His current projects include the translation of the works of José María Eguren and Martín Adán, among others. He currently lives in Dallas, Texas with his wife, Erin and their dog, Willow.
