This 2022 some of the most read books they were “Violeta” by Isabel Allende, “Malas mujeres” by María Hesse and “Proyecto Silverview” by John le Carré, which appeared on several “best of” lists at the end of the year.
Depending on each author, the selection varies, with different genres and articles that are favored from article to article, but to know things in perspective, El Universal revealed a text of the year 1923 that allows us to know what the tastes and trends of that time were like.
titled “New Year’s Pages: What was the best book of the year?”was originally published on December 27, 1923 by Luis G. Nuila and it contains various opinions of librarians and educated personalities regarding which were their main texts that year or which ones the public went to the most, among which is the writer Xavier Villaurrutia.
“The stories of Calleja, the works of Salgari, the travel books are preferred. In some libraries, such as the ‘Just Saw’, the European War intrigued the visitors, as well as the works of Mr. Blaco Ibáñez and the Grammar Academy. Nervo was requested a lot in ‘Manuel Acuña’, from Tizapán: as well as ‘A Thousand and One Nights’. In San Ángel, Nervo triumphed, along with ‘El tesoro de la juventud’, in addition to “The Crusader” by Walter Scott, Dumas, Verne, Hugo and Juan de Dios Peza. ‘Las desencantadas’ by Loti was in great demand at the ‘Gabriela Mistral’, in addition to ‘La feria de los discretos’, by Baroja, and ‘El tesoro de la juventud’, with Salgari of course. In the ‘José Enrique Rodó’ they also asked for a lot’Don Quixote’ and ‘A thousand and one nights‘” wrote the author, who collected this information from librarians.
Just as in that first paragraph the taste for the adventures of authors such as Alexandre Dumas, Jules Verne and Victor Hugoalso stands out a lot “The treasure of youth” and the work of Amado Nervo, which were also mentioned in other parts of the article.
“Nervo’s works, especially ‘Plenitud’, are the ones we have sold the most during the year. What came to us from the south Villaurrutia, Already a critic of those who inspire confidence (Xavier knows so many things!), he is, of course, aware of what is happening in Spanish-American books. He speaks to me with enthusiasm about Pablo Neruda, the Chilean poet of ‘Crepusculario’”, said Xavier Villaurrutia himself.
Loved nerve
On the other hand, he also interviewed Mr. Juan B. Iguiniz, deputy director of the National Librarywho made his personal recommendations:
“The ones that have interested me the most and that I consider essential for scholars to consult are, in my humble opinion, taking into account my hobbies, the ‘Mexico history’by Monsignor Francisco Banegas Galván; the ‘Autobiographical Dictionary of Conquerors and Settlers of New Spain’published by Mr. Francisco A. de Icaza and ‘Cuauhtemoc’from González Obregón”, he said.
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Eduardo Colin, from the Secretariat of the School of Jurisprudence, shared with the journalist that “The latest literary production, nationalist, on the one hand, or Japanese, ultraist and stridentist, on the other, although from a vigorous start, has not produced a definitive book this year, in which these orientations realized their truly human and aesthetic expression. Among the most finished work, ‘El Minutero’, by Lopez Velarde, seems to me the most substantial work of “the left”; the publication of ‘The concept of Universal History’, by Antonio Case, Although it is not a strictly literary event, it seems to me significant in our letters, for the breath of intellectual and moral nobility —which is almost Beauty— and for the eloquence of those pages”.
Finally, he stressed thanks to two employees of the National Library —which that year had more than 110,000 readers—, that the attendees asked for a lot “The Treasure of Youth” and “The Three Musketeers” by Alexandre Dumas.
Eduardo Colin, from the Secretariat of the School of Jurisprudence, shared with the journalist that “The latest literary production, nationalist, on the one hand, or Japanese, ultraist and stridentist, on the other, although from a vigorous start, has not produced a definitive book this year, in which these orientations realized their truly human and aesthetic expression. Among the most finished work, ‘El Minutero’, by Lopez Velarde, seems to me the most substantial work of “the left”; the publication of ‘The concept of Universal History’, by Antonio Case, Although it is not a strictly literary event, it seems to me significant in our letters, for the breath of intellectual and moral nobility —which is almost Beauty— and for the eloquence of those pages”.
Finally, he stressed thanks to two employees of the National Library —which that year had more than 110,000 readers—, that the attendees asked for a lot “The Treasure of Youth” and “The Three Musketeers” by Alexandre Dumas.
With information from El Universal.
