Life of Samuel Johnson - James Boswell

It is not the complete biography, that would have been a magnificient achievement, I have read the abridged edition published in 1917 (available in Project Gutenberg). Johnson was a seventeenth century intellectual, and a peculiar one. The best conversationalist and a true believer, in this book Boswell details the anecdotes of twenty years of relationship.

Siete noches - Jorge Luis Borges

Siete conferencias que dio Borges en Buenos Aires en 1977 y que luego pulió para su publicación en 1980. Los temas: La Divina Comedia, La pesadilla, Las mil y una noches, El budismo, La poesía, La cábala y La ceguera. Extraordinaria erudición que no se hace pesada por su recurso contínuo a la anécdota.

Too Much Happiness - Alice Munro

Nine short stories set in Munro's usual Canadian landscapes plus a historical fiction, the one that titles the entire book, about a russian matemathician, Sofia Kovalevskaya. High-level prose all the time, subtle details over and over again. Munro was elderly when she published this, but she maintained all her skill all the same.

Reina - Elizabeth Duval

Esta es una primera novela, que puede que sea la última si la autora decide seguir por otros caminos. Escrita antes de los veinte años ,con la ventaja del nombre internacional, no se le puede negar precocidad y audacia. Reina es lo que se proclama y el paisaje de su auto-ficción es la aventura de salir a estudiar el primer años de universidad en París. No soy la "lectora" a la que se dirige, pero he apreciado sus reflexiones.

The Monster Loves his Labyrinth - Charles Simic

Notebooks, it's the explanatory subtitle. These are some anecdotes from his life, general reflections and a series of aforisms. He is especially concerned with what it is to be a poet today, and how he sees poetry. Plus his criticism of critics. In any circumstance he favors humor. Born serbian himself, desapproves of nationalisms.

Los cinco y yo - Antonio Orejudo

Divertimento donde se juntan la infancia del autor, su amigo Rafael Reig y un homenaje a los libros de los cinco de Enid Blyton. Aquellos libros infantiles que aunque, vistos con objetividad, son poco menos que horribles, fascinaban a los niños de la época. Convertidos todos en personajes, la trama se desboca y acaba en Almería entre conspiraciones farmaceúticas.

The Fountain Overflows - Rebecca West

No idea what the reason for the title is. The novel is a quite delightful story about a peculiar family. Everyone is a genius in some way and also a misfit in some other way. The narrator is a young girl with great aptitude for music but even greater for writing, as we can clearly see. It reminds me of some classics, Little Women, Mary Poppins, even if it's not just for young people. The story it's set at the turn of the 19h to the 20th century.