The Clouds

The Clouds

<div><p>"Saer is one of the best writers of today in any language."—Ricardo Piglia</P><p>"What Saer presents marvelously is the experience of reality, and the characters' attempts to write their own narratives within its excess."—<i>Bookforum</I></P><p>In modern-day Paris, Pichón Garay receives a computer disk containing a manuscript—which might be fictional, or could be a memoir—by Doctor Real, a nineteenth-century physician tasked with leading a group of five mental patients on a trip to a recently constructed asylum. Their trip, which ends in disaster and fire, is a brilliant tragicomedy thanks to the various insanities of the patients, among whom is a delusional man who greatly over-estimates his own importance and a nymphomaniac nun who tricks everyone—even the other patients—into sleeping with her.</p><p>Fascinating as a faux historical novel and written in Saer's typically gorgeous, Proustian style, <i>The Clouds </I>can be read as a metaphor for exile—a huge theme for Saer and a lot of Argentine writers—as well as an examination of madness.</p><p><b>Juan José Saer </B>was the leading Argentinian writer of the post-Borges generation. The author of numerous novels and short-story collections (including <i>Scars </I>and <i>La Grande</I>), Saer was awarded Spain's prestigious Nadal Prize in 1987 for <i>The Event</I>. Five of his novels are available from Open Letter Books.</p><p><b>Hilary Vaughn Dobel </B>has an MFA in poetry and translation from Columbia University. She is the author of two manuscripts and, in addition to Saer, she has translated work by Carlos Pintado.</div>