Between August 1763 and the fall of 1803, it took 700 pages to novelize the 40 years that Spain came to power in the territory of the Mississippi and the struggles between tribes and colonists. It’s a little-known piece of Spanish history that sheds light on after a tremendous documentation process and won him the Planeta Novel Prize last October. related to far from Louisiana to talk Luz Gabas (Monzón, 1968) At the Maestral Literary Evenings (20:30), which he attended together on Friday, 2017 like fire on ice.
He finished the novel in early 2022 and won the Planeta Prize in October. It’s only been three months but it’s been intense.
On the one hand, there is the labor part, which involves a lot of work, as it is a much more intense promotion than any other novel. On an intimate level, it’s a great satisfaction. I still get up and wonder if it just happened to me. This is very nice. And on a literary level, the novel is understood, and the tremendous effort behind it, the reception has obviously been good. Readers say it, critics say. I am very pleased.
He says Arturo Pérez Reverte and Leandro Pérez forced him to write a story for the book in 2018. under two flagsAbout the role of Spain in the independence of the United States and from there, out of curiosity at the time this thing came far from Louisiana.
Yes, and thank you for asking me that story. I studied COU in the US, studied English Philology, and I remember articles sent to me on Mark Twain’s literature. When they asked me the story, I thought: “White and bottled, I must set my sights on the heart of the United States.” The truth is, I only knew the headlines, but when I started digging, I discovered a universe of different social groups living together on both sides during the 40 years that Mississippi was Spanish territory. How the Creoles rejected us and took up arms, how the governor brutally placated the situation, how the French families rejected the Spaniards was something unknown.
He describes his novel as follows: romantic, historical and adventure with themes such as power struggles, machismo, racism and class difference. We haven’t changed that much.
Yes, but I believe that the past times are always worse because the living conditions have nothing to do with the welfare system achieved. I can’t compare my life to that of an 18th century Louisiana woman. It is true that there are always things to improve and that is how societies progress. In documenting myself for the novel, I found several profiles of brave women that the reader would not believe if I wrote about them. As for slavery, we find it literally horrible. There I learned about the world of burgundy slaves who fled the fields and settled on the edge of the swamps, lived among wild animals and fed on roots in inhumane conditions. But they preferred this place because they lived freely.
He also talks about the oppression of the locals. In the XXI century and still lives with reservations. This is something very serious, but goes unnoticed.
We think nothing and also know very little. We are left with the image of Western films corresponding to the beginning of the 19th century. My novel takes place just before that. When is it going to end The last mohican, 40 years of Spain in that region begins to understand each other, and then the conquest of the West begins. I was fascinated by everything I learned about the many tribes that exist and their concerns. They were aware of two important things: their problems with alcohol and that North Americans would lose their land with the spread. This is a tragedy.
far from Louisiana It covers 700 pages, which would seem like a lot if it weren’t for the fact that it spanned the forty years that Spain settled on these lands.
I think it will be a lot if history takes over because it may be heavy, but as this is a romance, the physical and emotional journeys of the characters must be fully resolved. When I sit down to write, I know roughly how long it will take. I knew this short film wouldn’t exist. It was impossible. I described the battles in detail in the first manuscript, but after reading it, I saw that I was stranded and summarized it.
“All impossible love stories lead us to Shakespeare”
Why is this such an unknown phase of our history and why hasn’t we been told?
There would be several reasons. First, putting the whole story into study plans is sometimes a matter of lack of time. In this case, it was only 40 years, which is very little in the timeline of history. Second, the arrival of the Spaniards was not victorious, and the reprisals against the Creoles were also nothing to remember. Third, Spain’s role in helping the United States was implicit, not overt support, because we still had colonies in Latin America. He camouflaged himself by saying that he was at war with England. And fourth, the generation that lived in the moment was immediately involved in the wars against France, the French Revolution, and the colonies were already lost. I didn’t feel like talking about losses.
The documentation process had to be intense.
It’s like a fat dissertation. Actually, I’m ordering supplies this Christmas and I have a huge pile of notes. I wrote many leaves to understand. When I started documenting myself, I was worried if I would be able to put all the information in order.
Suzette Girard and Ishcate, an Indian from the Kaskaskia tribe, fight for an impossible love. They’re a bit of Louisiana Romeo and Juliet.
All impossible love stories lead us to Shakespeare. Especially in Upper Louisiana, the relationship between a Frenchman and a Native American would be typical. Documented only I found the legend of the love story between a Native American and the daughter of a French merchant. And I think that should be true.
“I see everything I read in the cinema. But yes, ‘Far From Louisiana’ would have been a great movie without a doubt”
He opens the epilogue to the book with an Indian proverb. “It takes a thousand voices to tell a single story.” Was it like that in this novel?
Yes, and best of all, a lot of documented sound. That’s one way of saying that you need to read a lot of this part of history to know what it was and what historians say it was. I am not a historian, I am a novelist. Today I noticed that someone was interested in the figure of Fernando de Gálvez and gave him a bibliography.
To go far from Louisiana just like in the cinema palm trees in the snow?
I watch everything I read in movies because I really like movies. To read the story of a novel is to make your own movie. But yes, it would be a great movie, no doubt about it. Falling in love with her back is the job of a producer and a director. palm trees in the snow. But if not, then it doesn’t matter.
He will be at the Maestral Literary Evenings with this novel on Friday, and you already know that a special menu and also a wine have been created inspired by his story.
I was at Literary Evenings. like fire on ice And the experience was valuable, my dear. About the menu, about the wine… I still have a small bottle of Albort, which is the name of the wine. On this occasion, I loved the menu they prepared. How do people have so much creativity? And wine, Ninteehi, my heart. I know I’m going to have a great time.