O rastro que deixamos (‘The Traces We Leave’)

Synopsis

Like the pebbles left by Hansel to retrace his steps in the heart of the forest, O rastro que deixamos unites a body of texts published by Agustín Fernández Paz in different media over time, as well as other unpublished works.

These traces are a showcase for two essential lines of work: the memory of childhood and the art of writing. Under the epigraph “The Landscape of Memory”, the first part unites writing in which experiences of childhood and youth dominate. The second part, entitled “The Art of Writing”, has texts which talk of his passion for reading and writing as well as his faith in the power of words to change the world and to change lives.

As in the fictional works of Fernández Paz, these pages seduce the reader with their clarity of ideas and the magical way in which they are expressed. Moreover, they allow us to intuit the traces of real life experiences in his work and to discover the fundamentals of the narrator’s art, the title with which the author most identifies.

Each of the two parts closes with some narrative pages. The first ends with the short stories “A mirada de Clara” (‘Clara’s Gaze’) and “Cando nacen as estrelas” (‘When Stars Are Born’). The second finishes with a peculiar and ironic tale of words, “Reflexiones sobre a precariedade laboral” (‘Reflections on the Precariousness of the Trade’). These short stories show how the author constructs his fictional works with threads from his own life, a life which later translates into his characters.