Short Stories by Latin American Women: The Magic and the Real

by Celia Correas de Zapata

ZAPATA, the acknowledged world expert on Latin American women's fiction, has collected stories by thirty of the most important women writers of Latin America and had them cast into English by such renowned translators as Gregory Rabassa and Margaret Sayers Peden. The stories all share the common gender orientation of the authors and their approach to narration through magical realism. Included are such noted authors as Isabel Allende, Rosario Castellanos, Amparo Davila, Rosario Ferre, Clarice Lispector, Elena Poniatowska and Luisa Valenzuela. An introduction by Isabel Allende is included.

Genres: Short Stories

Library Binding

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Celia Correas de Zapata (n. 9 de octubre de 1935, Mendoza) es una escritora, académica, y poeta argentina, siendo además una destacada estudiosa de la historia de las escritoras latinoamericanas. Hija del destacado Edmundo Correas y nieta del célebre Juan de Dios Correas, ambos muy importantes en la historia de su ciudad natal: Mendoza. Es profesora de literatura en la Universidad Estatal de San José, en California.

Nacida en Argentina, actualmente reside en California. Ha editado, entre otras, la antología Short Stories by Latin America Women: The Magic and the Real con una introducción de Isabel Allende.

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I purchased this book on a trip to Puerto Rico in March. While I don’t speak or read Spanish I was able to pick up this book’s English version on a small rounder in a mostly Spanish store. I religiously go to independent book stores and make a purchase whenever I’m traveling to a new place.
From the first story, Act of Vengeance, I was hooked. I rarely read short stories but when I do I forget how awesome they are. These were rich charactered and grab you stories by the first turn of the page. That’s what is so great about short stories. I love they these were all stories written by Latin women too. Sharing their cultural storytelling was riveting, rich and a superb read from cover to cover.

[Maureen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a interesting collection of short stories that I wish were published in Spanish. Some of my favorite authors--Rosario Ferre and Elena Garro especially--are included in this diverse group. The stories get more and more haunting and surreal as they go along. All are wonderfully written. Thanks go to professor Zapata (who unfortunately passed away in 2022) for putting these stories together and to the terrific translators who recreated these gems in English.

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Collection of strange and wonderful stories written by a diverse group of Latin American women. These were stories originally published in Spanish and other Latin languages; all have been translated into English by various translators. These are stories of magical realism, mystery, sex and death. Every one of these stories has something important to say; I'd read more from any of the authors w/in this book. The impression after reading the book in entirety (which took me months) was of a new world, or a world I'd almost forgotten existed. Latin American writing is unique in its ability to combine the daily and the mundane w/ the magical and this collection of stories explores how women navigate through a patriarchal society. These stories explore the way rules set forth by religion (often Catholic) become part of myth. These are stories about how women and men interact, what men expect from women, from placing them on a pedestal to treating them like possessions. These stories explore the stereotypes of "the old maid," "the innocent," "the whore," "the nun," "the loyal wife." There are stories of creative expression, like the velvet pillows and taking photographs to capture the passage of time.

My favorites:
"An Act of Vengeance" by Isabelle Allende
"The Tree" by Maria Luisa Bombal - Brigida marries a *much* older man, Luis, a close friend of her father, because she feels less guilty about being herself around him. Her father calls her retarded. She tries to get closer to Luis, asking him questions about himself, wanting to travel together; she thinks she loves him, but he refuses to connect with her on an emotional level - she is merely a pet to him, something pretty to have around. He prefers to work, he prefers the idea of her as mentally inferior. Every day she is able to escape into her dressing room, a room just her own, which is surrounded by a rubber tree, dappling the room w/ beautiful light. She realizes she doesn't love Luis but resigns herself to her situation...until the rubber tree is cut down and she sees how ugly and mean her situation is.
"Culinary Lesson" by Rosario Castellanos (about marriage; about "a piece of meat")
"A Poisoned Tale" by Rosario Ferre
"In the Family" by Maria Elena Llano
"Park Cinema" by Elena Poniatowska
"The IWM 1000" by Alicia Yanez Cossio

[John Benjamin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Latin American female authors

Excellent though I should have read it in Spanish. These Latin American authors created jewels to be treasured. It’s hard to believe that most are unknown in the English language.

[Dieuwke · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's something to Latin American literature that does it for me. Clearly there's a strong heritage in magic realism, transforming itself to 2018 compatibility. There's also something to women writers that just resonates more with me in terms of suppression, struggles, sexism, etc.
In this great collection I found many a gem, of mostly completely unknown (to me, that is) authors. Brought it back to the library, happy to have read it.