26 January 09 | Chad W. Post

I just got this along with a note that, “If you feel motivated to respond, please send your comments to both Francine Fialkoff at fialkoff@reedbusiness.com y Ron Shank at rshank@reedbusiness.com. There is always the possibility that they may reconsider their decision.”

Dearest friends and colleagues:

It is with much sadness that I inform you that Reed Business Information has decided to shut down publication of Críticas after eight long and successful years. Unfortunately, this means that my time with the company has come to an end.

The publisher stated that ad support has greatly diminished, and given the current economic downtown, there was no sufficient foundation on which to continue with the publication of Críticas. Still, they remain optimistic, adding that they hope to somehow continue coverage of the U.S. Spanish-language book market through sister publications Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and School Library Journal. Your feedback to the editorial staff of those publications could help to move things in the right direction.

I take this opportunity to thank you all for your encouragement, trust, and support during my time here. I have acquired a wealth of knowledge and have made what I hope will be long-lasting relationships. I walk away with much satisfaction in my efforts and achievements here, as well as with wonderful friendships. I trust our paths will surely cross in the near future as we continue to help grow and solidify the U.S. Spanish-language book market.

My last day in the office is Friday, January 30.

Un fuerte abrazo,
Aída Bardales

P.S. In case I may have left someone off the distribution list, please do forward this message to our colleagues. Thank you.


Comments are disabled for this article.
....
And the Hippies Came (Llegaron los hippies)
And the Hippies Came (Llegaron los hippies) by Manuel Abreu Adorno
Reviewed by Vincent Francone

Kids these days. They think they’ve invented everything. The McOndo writers and Crack Generation, who so proudly buck the Magic Realist tendencies of García Márquez, who seek to find a place within Latin American letters sans spirits . . .. . .

Read More >

Traveler of the Century
Traveler of the Century by Andrés Neuman
Reviewed by Chad W. Post

When I was about two-thirds of the way through Neuman’s very ambitious, very engrossing novel, Bromance Will Evans asked me what I thought the purpose the rapist had in this book. Not who the rapist was—something that’s held in suspense. . .

Read More >

Anatomy of a Night
Anatomy of a Night by Anna Kim
Reviewed by Jennifer Marquart

“At night Amarâq is coated with a darkness as viscous as unmixed colors, neither the fjord nor the mountains, valleys, lakes, or the river exist, there is only a black mass, a void that spreads across the landscape sporadically, pressing. . .

Read More >

Les aigles puent
Les aigles puent by Lutz Bassman
Reviewed by John Thomas Mahany

If you’ve been following any of the recent Antoine Volodine talk going around Three Percent—both on the blog or on the podcasts—and have heard his fans wax obsessive over all his alter author-egos, you’re probably starting to feel some Volodine. . .

Read More >

Red Spectres
Red Spectres by V. Bryusov/M. Bulgakov/S. Krzhizhanovsky et al.
Reviewed by Aleksandra Fazlipour

Muireann Maguire’s Red Spectres is a stunning and engaging collection of eleven Russian gothic tales written by various authors during the early Soviet Era, all but two stories of which are featured in English for the first time ever. These. . .

Read More >

El arte de la resurrección (The Art of Resurrection)
El arte de la resurrección (The Art of Resurrection) by Hernán Rivera Letelier
Reviewed by Jeremy Osner

“The small stone plaza was floating in the midday heat. The Christ of Elqui, kneeling on the ground, his gaze thrown back on high, the part in his hair dark under the Atacaman sun—he felt himself falling into an ecstasy.. . .

Read More >

There Once Lived a Girl Who Seduced Her Sister's Husband, and He Hanged Himself: Love Stories
There Once Lived a Girl Who Seduced Her Sister's Husband, and He Hanged Himself: Love Stories by Ludmilla Petrushevskaya
Reviewed by Brendan Riley

This slender, uncanny volume—the second, best-selling collection of stories by Russian author Ludmilla Petrushevskaya to appear in the U.S.—has already received considerable, well-deserved praise from many critics and high profile publications. Its seventeen short tales, averaging ten pages each, are. . .

Read More >

Basti
Basti by Intizar Husain
Reviewed by Rachael Daum

The Urdu word basti refers to any space, intimate to worldly, and is often translated as “common place” or “a gathering place.” This book by Intizar Husain, who is widely regarded as one of the most important living Pakistani writers,. . .

Read More >

The Whispering Muse
The Whispering Muse by Sjón
Reviewed by Vincent Francone

The Whispering Muse, one of three books by Icelandic writer Sjón just published in North America, is nothing if not inventive. Stories within stories, shifting narration, leaps in time, and characters who transform from men to birds and back again—you’ve. . .

Read More >

Mundo Cruel by Luis Negrón
Mundo Cruel by Luis Negrón by Luis Negrón
Reviewed by Camila Santos

Luis Negrón’s debut collection Mundo Cruel is a journey through Puerto Rico’s gay world. Published in 2010, the book is already in its fifth Spanish edition. Here in the U.S., the collection has been published by Seven Stories Press and. . .

Read More >

The next few events from our Translation Events Calendar: See More Events >