Rachel Engelman in front of Walrus Books in San Telmo. (Photo: Beatrice Murch)

Buenos Aires is a book city. Many of the continent’s most influential writers have at some stage had a porteño post code. Indeed, the work of great writers such as Jorge Luis Borges, Julio Cortazar and José Hernández have all been shaped by the passion of the city’s thriving literary contingent. Fast forward to 2012 and there is a burgeoning literary movement emerging in the capital once more – albeit this time hidden down amongst the shelves of a quaint San Telmo bookstore.

Founded by Geoffrey, from the US, and his wife Josefina, from Salta, Walrus Books has become something of a local institution. It is a mecca for ex-pats, tourists, and Argentines alike who all pilgrimage down the cobbled streets of San Telmo in search of their next English language read. But Walrus Books is more than just a bookshop these days; turn the page and it has plenty more to offer. The store has become a welcoming backdrop for original literary discourse and a meeting place for the sort of booklovers that momentarily close their eyes and sigh deeply as they enter it.

Back in March 2012 and under the watchful eye of 4,000 used, new, and hard-to-find titles from the shop’s impressive catalogue, Walrus Courses began. These literature and writing courses are the brainchild of writer and infectiously passionate ex-pat Rachel Engelman, who has studied fiction under Pulitzer Prize winning author, Steven Millhauser. So, how did they come about? After coming into contact with many young people in Buenos Aires who treated reading as a romance rather than a hobby, the Los Angeles native approached Geoffrey at the Walrus with the idea of running a few courses and they have not looked back since. “It’s something fundamentally missing from BA culture and we thought it would be a great thing for a good many people. Literature and Writing classes given in English, not just for foreigners, but for Argentines. For everyone, really,” commented Engelman.

The courses that have been run to-date have covered an eclectic range of subjects approaching literature from a mixture of angles. Over the past few months ‘The Modern American short story’,  ‘The J.D. Salinger Seminar’, ‘The Short Story Course’, ‘The Art Of Fiction: A Course In Reading And Writing’, and the ‘Creative Writing Workshop’, have all been the focus of rigorous debate amongst their participants. Whether a first timer or a seasoned literary scholar, Walrus Courses offer an environment within which expression is encouraged and everyone has room to speak. The class size is limited too, which keeps it intimate and personal.

Rachel Engelman leads a literature class in Walrus Books in San Telmo. (Photo: Beatrice Murch)

Now entering their third wave, the demographic is expanding – “there are the loquacious Argentines with remarkable vocabulary and poetic souls – all writing in English. Then there are the brasileros learning about Ginsberg and the British reading Raymond Carver and the Argentines falling over themselves for Flannery O’Connor,” Engelman added.

The upcoming courses, which are scheduled to start in September and run until late October, include ‘The Paris Writers’ a look at the short stories of the great writers of ‘The Lost Generation’ in 1920s  Paris; ‘California Writers vs. New York Writers’ comparing notable authors from both shores and considering how particular settings inspire particular forms of art; and ‘Creative Writing’, an introduction to fiction writing, which will include narrative assignments designed to hone narrative skills and develop participants’ creative senses. And with interest growing fast, there are plans to open an institute in Palermo Soho with more class variety. But fear not, the evening courses at their spiritual home of the Walrus will remain a mainstay.

It is not just all about the subject material, however. “The courses offer the chance for foreigners to get to know locals on an intimate (and authentic) level,” states Engelman. But diversity does not come just in the form of nationality; previous students have been of all ages and have come from a wide range of backgrounds. There are not only the classic, young literature students, but also economists, film students, translators, salesmen, journalists, and stay at home mothers who have taken courses to-date. It is people from all across the globe meeting under one roof to talk about something they love with a passion. After all as their founder reminds us, these are not lecture courses – “they are conversations in which the classes take on the intimacy of a group of very opinionated friends in a living room”. Except this living room just so happens to have Borges, Cortazar, Hernández and co. looking down on you and hanging off your every word. Unlike the books which encircle them, however, none of the ideas being presented and discussed are second-hand.

For more information visit walruscourses.com or Walrus Books.

The Argentina Independent would like to invite talented writers to submit short stories, excerpts and poems in English, for the second edition of our short story competition. The contest is open to all writers who want to share their unique voice with Argentina’s English speaking community. Deadline for submissions is Friday 5th October.

We will announce the five finalists on 10th October, and readers will be invited vote to decide the winner, who will have their piece published on our homepage. All five finalists will have the chance to read their pieces at the BA Books Lover’s Night on Friday 26th October (details to follow shortly).

Contest Guidelines

1. All entries must be less than 1000 words. There is no minimum word count.

2. All entries must be submitted by Friday 5th October at midnight.

3. Please submit a Word or Text document, size 12 pt. font. Include your name, a title, and word count. Please proofread thoroughly.

4. Participation is limited to one submission per person.

5. The writing entered and all rights to it must be your own. In submitting your entry, you agree to The Argentina Independent’s non-exclusive use of your writing on our website, newsletter, and associated printed press. You maintain full copyright for your entry and, where used by The Argentina Independent, the writing will be will be credited to you as the author, with a link to your website or blog where applicable.

6. The winning entry will be published in our November edition and online.

SEND ALL SUBMISSIONS TO: competitions@argentinaindependent.com

Please title your email Writing Contest: [Your Name].

Lead image by Jeffrey James Pacres

It’s Friday, people!

And I have great news: I’m still here!

I know that last week I may have suggested that the local Government was en route to arrest me for considering me an enemy of the state due to my treacherous citizenship and was planning to ship me off to the Argentine Guantanamo, but it turns out it was all a huge misunderstanding! (Basically, I made it all up.)

So, what else is new? Oh, right. The Fall is basically extinct, and in further evidence that Argentina is approaching a “tropical country” status largely due to climate change, last week we went to bed while enjoying a warm, summer night and woke up the next morning freezing to death. I’m not kidding, this week it was actually colder in some areas of Argentina than in Antarctica.

So hurry up, my fellow hibernation enthusiasts, and learn the facts before we’re all encased in ice for the rest of eternity under half a kilometer of snow.

This is what you need to know:

• 

  In a distant past (2010) people would stride great lengths and travel en masse to the International Book Fair just to catch a glimpse of the so-called "books." Now everyone's hooked on e-books, so no one gives a shit. (Photo/Wikipedia)

  The Argentine Senate has preliminary approved the YPF expropriation bill, which is now headed to the Lower House floor. Lawmakers believe the bill could be finally passed next Wednesday, unless NATO bombs us first.

•  Still, it seems my country (Spain) will have to swallow its words and find a different approach to the whole YPF controversy. After what started as a grim warning of how terrible Argentina’s decision to expropriate the oil company was, the outrage seemed to fade out as the week progressed and the Spanish government found that pretty much no one was willing to join the administration’s plans to bomb Buenos Aires. International organizations such as the IMF and the World Bank, as well as the European Union and the US feigned disappointment and indignation for a couple of minutes, but then swiftly washed their hands from the whole thing by calling it a “bilateral issue.” Sure, the European Commission has warned that Argentina’s decision will have “dire consequences” for the population’s future, but there’s not much more they can do. Except bomb us.

• I’m done with this YPF thing for today, I promise. Although don’t get too excited. Malvinas is coming up next.

• The brand new Argentine ambassador in London, Alicia Castro, first published an interesting op-ed on Malvinas (See? I told you) in the conservative British newspaper The Telegraph, which caused the faces of all its readers to melt, Indiana Jones-style. She then formally presented the UK government with a proposal to restore commercial flights between the Malvinas Islands and Buenos Aires, as a friendly gesture. Then the islanders said no, which sucks because I was really hoping to score me some low-cost tickets for one of these long weekends. Think about it, the Malvinas could be a great place to celebrate Spring Break. British pubs, the sea and lots and lots of penguins. It doesn’t get any better than that. Come on, islanders!

• If you are a passionate follower of President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, chances are: a) You hate me for being “anti-Kirchnerite” (even though I’m not), and b) You’re not reading this before you’re heading over to the Vélez stadium in Liniers to attend the Cristina-palooza that is taking place today at 6 pm! (You’ve probably seen the posters while walking down the street, summoning everyone to go show their support for the President). And if you’re wondering what the hoopla is all about, what big announcement she’s going to make, this is the best part: it’s about nothing. You know, like Seinfeld. No, seriously. The whole point of the rally is to have a stadium full of people calling her name, while she gives an impassioned speech showing how strong she is. That way she can persuade NATO from bombing us all next Wednesday.

• If you’re wondering why the Subte has been going on strike almost everyday lately, here is why (not that you care). Long story short, since the whole subway system is a ticking time bomb on the verge of collapse and neither the National nor the City governments want to take care of it, the Subte employees are selflessly trying to raise awareness about how unprotected us passengers are, while putting their entire careers at risk over charges of insubordination.  Also, they want more money.

• Great news everyone! You know when you’re standing in the immigration line to enter/leave Argentina at the Ezeiza airport and you realize you didn’t bring a pen with you so you can’t fill out those pesky immigration forms? Well, not to worry because as of now the Government has finally implemented the new digital terminals with a biometric system. How exotic and 21st century of yours, Argentina! It’s almost like in the US! (Without the paranoia).

• Terrible news everyone! You know when you’re standing in the luggage belt after landing at the Ezeiza airport (don’t make me link to Wikipedia again) and you realize your suitcases have been ripped open and someone has stolen your Toblerones, your iPod, your iPad, your iLaptop or whatever and your digital camera because you were dumb enough to put them in your suitcase instead of carrying them with you? Well, it is still happening (which you should have guessed since I started this bullet point by saying “Terrible news everyone!”).  The Ezeiza airport police arrested 15 employees this week who were found responsible of stealing hundreds of items from careless travelers in the last couple of years. So remember that next time you send off your blackberry in a giant suitcase because you can’t be bothered to carry it.

• I guess being afraid of having your stuff stolen somewhat counts as being paranoid, so there! The local airport experience is now just like in the US.

• Argentina, you’re on (technologically speaking) fire! Since apparently the biometric system at the airport was not enough to make us look cool, now taxis will gradually begin offering passengers the possibility of paying with a credit or debit card. Fancy! So far only “15 or 20 taxis” have been provided with a wireless card reader in order to test the new methodology and “see what happens.” Really? “See what happens”? What could happen? You pay and you get out of the car! Am I missing something here? Whatever. Good luck catching one of those “15 or 20″ taxis in a city of three million people.

• Have you visited the International Book Fair in Plaza Italia yet? Why not? Never mind.

• Well if you had been there on opening day, you would have witnessed the hilariously tragic crossfire between Education Minister Alberto Sileoni and the City’s Culture Minister Hernán Lombardi (I know you didn’t click on any of those links, by the way). You see, since both of them were asked to give a speech at the opening ceremony, Lombardi (at odds with Cristina) seized the opportunity to attack the National Government for last month’s “ban on books” fiasco. Sileoni, of course, pretty much told him to fuck off while the audience booed and clapped and stuff. All in the name of education and culture, people.

• [ADDENDUM] Jesus, people! OK, I get it. I got like 15 emails from you and one guy even complained about it below. There are no “boos” to be heard in the Feria del Libro video, even though they existed. Sorry I gave you hope on some “boos” everyone! And if you still need to satisfy your blood lust, here’s a video from a couple of years ago when Cuban dissident Hilda Molina presented her book at the fair and leftist groups decided to crash her event and ruin it, all in the name of freedom of speech. Now fuck off.

• Oops! Back in 2008,  58 Pre-Columbian artifacts dating from 500
  

  Hotel Eden. Nazis welcome. (Photo/Wikipedia)

  to 1000AD, with a cumulative value estimated at around US$ 700,000, were mysteriously stolen from the Ambato Museum in La Falda, Córdoba. How exciting and Hollywoodesque, right? Even more intriguing, the Ambato Museum is located inside the creepy Hotel Eden, a mythical place that once hosted Che Guevara and Albert Einstein. What’s worse, according to historians, its owners were staunch Adolf Hitler supporters (no surprise there) and had personally offered their hotel as a hideout to the fuhrer in case things didn’t go as planned after World War II. How awesome is this story, huh? You’ve got the fifth Indiana Jones movie right here. The script is writing itself! But alas, it turns out it wasn’t the Neo-Nazis trying to revive Hitler and Che Guevara by casting some ancient indigenous spell only described in one of the stolen artifacts. Nah, that’s too contrived. They were actually in the hands of a City Government official who moonlights as an art collector, obviously. The guy has claimed that he purchased the items “in good faith” and that he had no idea that they were stolen, while City Hall has denied that the guy was working for them. Whatever the case may be, it’s a thousand times less exciting than the possibility of a fight to the death between zombie Hitler and zombie Che Guevara while the fate of humanity hangs in the balance.

• I know, I have issues. Leave me alone.

•  This week, in “The Football“: TRAGEDY! In an unexpected turn of events that has the global scientific community at a loss, infallible, human-like deity Lionel Messi failed to score against the Chelsea this week, triggering an unstoppable chain of events that has ended in the shaming and collapse of Spain as a sports legend worldwide. And we all know what this means. THIS. That’s it, folks. Messi is now officially on the way down. Sure, he reached the pinnacle of his almighty glory these last few years, but deep down we all knew he wouldn’t be able to keep this charade up for long. Now, I don’t know much about football (that’s why every week I keep feeding you inaccurate information when it comes to games, and teams and players and shit. It’s not that I fail at gathering the correct information. I just don’t care about getting it), but one thing is clear: when you fail once, the deep scrutinizing begins. “Is something wrong with him?” or  ”Messi hits rock bottom!” are some of the statements coming from the pundits who allegedly know what they’re talking about. So now it’s only a matter of time before he gives in to cocaine, alcohol and prostitutes (you know, like a certain someone) and he ends up in a distant outpost in the Middle East while engaging in mischief and tomfoolery largely due to cultural differences (you know, like a certain someone).

• You thought I was going to compare him to Diego Maradona, didn’t you? Please, like I’m that predictable.

• Oh, shit: The local press is saying that Lionel Messi’s girlfriend is pregnant. And so the collapse of an idol begins.

• Erik Lamela (someone I never heard of before but apparently used to play for River Plate so I guess he was kind of important), has having some sort of a kerfuffle with another player and decided to settle their argument by spitting on him. So here’s the video, which is totally disappointing because you can see him pursing his lips but you cannot see the actual spit. And let’s face it, that’s the only reason why you would click on that link in the first place. Still, Spitgate was so big this week that I decided to mention it, just to keep you in the loop. Because I know you don’t give a shit about Cristina’s speech today. But the spit incident? You have to know all about that!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Send Adrian your comments, thoughts or tips at adrianbono@hotmail.com or follow him on Twitter at @AdrianBono

IdeaMe is an online platform, which helps creators, be they inventors, artists, or designers, among others, to finance their projects through crowd funding. In a new series, the Indy will be featuring and promoting one project every week, with the aim of helping the creators finance and achieve their dreams.

This week, we have chosen ‘Telares Digitales’, (‘Digital Looms’) brought to life by graphic designer and illustrator Federico Abuyé. The project is a 32-page, 14 x 10cm, full colour book, which seeks to reinterpret and pay homage to the art, languages and symbols of pre-Columbian Latin America. The drawings, created on a computer, use modern techniques of art, principally graphic design. Abuyé created one image a day during the month of  October, and is currently enhancing the images digitally.

Colorful geometric shapes drawn by Federico Abuyé

Having previously worked on projects focusing on this culture, for example creating Andean musical instruments, the project was inspired by the feelings that pre-Columbian art has on Abuyé, and focuses particularly on Andean culture. “There are certain things that make an impression on you and leave their mark. I found that pre-Columbian art had this effect on me.”

The colourful images, often almost pixelated, follow geometric shapes and patterns, and although they contain many of the basic elements of prehistoric drawings, the fact that they are done using a computer means they cannot strictly be classified as such. “This is what gives the project the character of something which is digitally woven.” The paradoxical nature of the project’s title is perhaps what gives it its edge; a depiction of antiquity through very modern mediums, to bring the past to life in the present day. And yet, for the artist, this was not actually the central point of interest. For him, the past and the modern day are not too different from one another; it is rather the universal element that can be found in pre-Columbian art and symbols that was interesting to him. “Ancient times are not so different from today, because on the one hand, time is not linear, it’s cyclical, and on the other hand, things that have “spirit”, or the things that are truly art, like weaving or pre-Columbian pottery, are timeless to me.”

For the most part, Abuyé wants the project to stand as an object of art that speaks for itself, without requiring explanation of the culture or the symbols.

Telares Digitales, Abuye's search into Pre-Columbian Art

The book is not supposed to be an anthropological guide to pre-Columbian Latin America, yet he notes that while books based in the anthropology of Latin America exist, there are very few books that focus on pre-Columbian times from a purely artistic point of view. A second element of the project then is to generate interest in pre-Columbian art and culture.

Receiving enough money would, Abuyé says, be incredibly helpful economically, allowing him to carry out his project fully, but it is not just about the money for him. “You do this because you love it, you do it from the heart. And the support, apart from being helpful financially, is an endorsement, it’s backing. It’s a hand that helps you feel like you’re on the right track.”

It is the 10th anniversary of the 2001 financial crisis in Argentina and we managed to get some of the best books and documentaries gathered in this financial crisis material round up to make you an expert on the subject. Check it out!

Documentaries:

‘Memoria del saqueo’

This documentary creates a timeline between the military dictatorship of 1976 until the beginning of the protesting in December 2001.

It reports 25 years of economic, financial and social problems because of the countries exorbitant debt as well political and financial corruption in government sectors.

This documentary is a complaint of the plundering of resources by multinational corporations with the complicity of the national government.

According to the director Pino Solanas, little has changed in Argentina since 2003: “the looting goes on.”

Director: Pino Solanas. Countries: Argentina/France/ Switzerland. Duration: 120 minutes. Year: 2004. Language: English and Spanish

‘The Take’

In the beginning of the Argentine economic collapse of 2001, former employees of the newly shut Forja plant in a suburban area of Buenos Aires, take over the factory as a part of a new movement that encourages workers to occupy bankrupt businesses to create jobs in an attempt to recuperate their means of living.

Locking themselves inside and with no bosses, 30 former auto-parts workers start running the once silenced factory and refuse to leave.

This act has the power to shake the basis of the whole globalization debate.

The president of the new worker’s co-operative, Freddy, and the head of the Movement of Recovered Companies, Lalo, know that their struggle is only beginning. Having to face a bureaucratic rampage amongst going to courts, dealing with cops and politicians, they know their success is far from secure. Their future is uncertain: they can either be granted legal protection or be evicted from the factory.

The presidential elections sets the background, having Carlos Menem – known as the main responsible for the crisis – as the front-runner. Menem’s supporters are the factory owners, who will get the factories back from the workers if their candidate wins.

Now the workers have to fight their bosses, the bankers and the whole economic system that do not really care about all the lives they affect by shutting down plants.

Directors: Avi Lewis and Naomi Klein. Country: Argentina/ Canada. Duration: 87 minutes. Year: 2004. Language: English and Spanish

‘The Argentina Experiment’

Greek documentary film maker Yorgos Avgeropoulos was living and working in Argentina between 2001 and 2002, during the crisis. He now returns to the country to re-examine the economic, political and social situation of Argentina and how it is handling the consequences of the collapse it faced ten years ago.

The documentary  creates a parallel of what happened in December 2001 and what is happening now in Argentina ten years later.

According to the documentary, the ending of the neoliberal economic model in Argentine economic calamity of 2001 left 39 people dead – murdered by the police and bank securities – 30,000 collateral damages (suicides, heart attacks and strokes) and over 50% of the population submerged in poverty and misery.

Director: Yorgos Avgeropoulos. Country: Argentina. Duration: 100 minutes. Year: 2010-2011. Language: English, Spanish and Greek

Books:

‘Broken Promises? – The Argentine Crisis and Argentine Democracy’

Editors Edward Epstein and David Pion-Berlin have brought together an impressive group of Argentine and American experts to contribute to in this book. This is considered to be the first comprehensive account of the 2001 Argentine economic collapse.

The book shows insights of the role of the police and the military, as well as the analysis of the behaviour of the population and politicians as the economic crisis develops.

It also portrays the Argentina emerging from the crisis and the complexities of contemporary Argentine democracy.

Editors: Edward Epstein and David Pion-Berlin, 296 pages. Publisher: Lexington Books. First edition: March 2008. Language: English

‘History of The Argentine Crisis’

According to author Mauricio Rojas, “there are countries which are rich and countries which are poor. And there are poor countries, which are growing rich. And there is Argentina.”

Rojas’ book explains in a summary the journey and the reasons that lead Argentina to its economic and financial crisis in 2001.  The text is written in a simple and accessible manner, perfect for the lay in Argentine politics or the ones that want to understand the crisis but not in depth.

Explaining the Argentine golden age between 1860 and 1930, which the country growth increased astonishingly, there came 70 years of stagnation as well as political, economical and especially social issues.

It sets the scene for the beginning of the 20^th century, when the country was richer than France, Italy and Sweden and its long and hard fall into bankruptcy.

The book also talks about the Perón years and its importance to Argentina, besides all the corruption, populism, nationalism and protectionism.

After years of inflation, aborted reforms, regional conflicts and political scandals, the country finds itself in a delicate political and financial situation.

Originally published in Swedish and later translated to English, Spanish and Portuguese, this book is highly recommended if you want to read a short but profound text to understand how such a powerful and country fell into financial failure.

Author: Mauricio Rojas, 130 pages. Publisher Cadal / Timbro. First edition: December 2003. Language: English, Swedish, Spanish and Portuguese

‘The Crisis of Argentine Capitalism’

Author Paul H. Lewis begins his book describing the development of the Argentine industry, emphasizing the period after World War II, in which Argentina had become the most industrialized nation in Latin America.

Lewis considered Perón and his military colleagues responsible for the end of the evolution of Argentine economy aiming dynamic capitalism.

He also describes the political disputes amongst peronists and anti-peronists between the years of 1955 to 1987 and points out how the post-Perón governments failed to incorporate the trade union movement in their list of priorities, causing – amongst other things – economic stagnation and an increase on the levels of violence.

This book is ideal for people who want a deep study on the roots of the Argentine instability and decline in the times before the crisis – or how Lewis calls “the politics of political stagnation” -, as it describes Argentina’s entrepreneurial classes in relation to foreign capital, labour, the government and the military.

It also differs from previous studies because it does not focus on parties or governmental institutions, but in pressure groups and their organization, development and political activities.

Author: Paul H. Lewis. 594 pages, Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press. First edition: February 1992. Language: English

‘And the money came rolling in (and out)’

Author Paul Blustein managed to expose in his book the flaws of the financial system worldwide and shows Argentina’s efforts in the 90s to become one of the developed countries – even being praised by the IMF, the World Bank and Wall Street.

Blustein – who also wrote a book about the IMF called “The Chastening”- gathered in “And the money came rolling in (and out)” hundreds of interviews with politicians, economists, stock market investors as well as parts of internal documents showing how the IMF ignored the vulnerabilities in the Argentine economic policy.

The narrative of the rise and fall of Argentine economy is very clear and makes the reading flow, being considered by many top publications such as The Economist and New York Sun to be a “page-turner”.

Author: Paul Blumstein. 304 pages, Publisher: PublicAffairs. First Edition: March 2005. Language: English

Book Cover of "Argentina: A Modern History"

Many say Argentina is not the country it was supposed to be.  In the early 20^th century it was well on its way to being the richest, most successful nation in the world. Today, it is suffering from a low economic status compared to some its Latin American neighbours, widespread distrust of government leadership, and a global reputation of instability. But what happened to it and why?

To put your questions to rest, Jill Hedges explains it all in her recently published book, “Argentina: A Modern History”. In a cohesive and readable summary, Hedges tells you what you need to know, in a way that makes sense to the casual reader and offers new insight for those more knowledgeable on the subjects.

Despite its scholastic and rather dull sounding title, Hedges presents the last 160 years of Argentine history in an entertaining narrative that reads more like an action thriller than an academic tome. At times even including cliffhangers: there are occasions where Hedges has the reader asking himself, “No way! What happened next?”

It’s true the recent history of Argentina has all the juicy components necessary for a page-turning suspense novel. The actual premise of Hedges’ book, however, is more serious. Through purposeful and straightforward writing, she explains why Argentina has fallen victim to a boom and bust economic cycle, constant political factionalism, and an undefined national identity. Much of its focus is on ex president Juan Domingo Perón, and how his image, as well as his policies, have shaped the country’s politics for the last 70 years.

The book begins in 1853, the year Argentina adopted its constitution and a logical starting point in understanding the country’s political development. From there, 13 well-written chapters, divided into clear sections, highlight important events and trends, over significant time periods.

Hedges’ history looks at the big picture first. By focusing on Argentina’s origins she examines the country’s make-up to identify its essential character. Suggesting that because rural Argentina was populated by immigrants, rather than through a gradual spread of previously-established settlers, the country developed into pockets of unique civilisations differing widely in their customs and beliefs. In an interesting hypothesis, Hedges ventures that these differences made it difficult for emerging political leaders to find common ground, and eventually led to an inherent inability to compromise.

What follows is a cast of characters, that together tell the story of Argentina’s past. Instead of presenting political figures solely in terms of their successes and failures, Hedges offers relevant details about their experiences, thus making their later actions more understandable.

Evita's Grave (Photo: Pek&Anoek)

The description of Eva Perón’s small-town upbringing in the vast Pampas is particularly telling. The youngest of five illegitimate children to a poor, but hard-working, single woman, ‘Evita’ was taught to be independent and resourceful, regardless of her low social class standing. Her mother refused to accept charity, not even food handouts from a local church kitchen. Had she done so, Hedge writes, she would have been subjected to the “humiliation of having her children inspected for dirty fingernails and lice”.

The book also lays out interesting ‘what-if’ scenarios, encouraging the reader to draw on his/her own imagination. For example, Hedges speculates that “Peronism” may never have evolved into a defining political position had Perón himself not given in to the overthrow in 1955 and instead, remained in office until the end of his term. Conversely, his exile from Argentina, which lasted 16 years, glorified his policies, forever endearing him to the working class, and granting future aspiring leaders a nostalgic tactic with which to influence populist emotion.

Indeed, for those who are not from Argentina, the concept of Peronism is difficult to explain. Hedges sheds some light on the matter by presenting it as an ideology, albeit not a very clear one, that has changed over time and has more to do with popular attitude than with concrete political policy. Even during Perón’s own presidency, his administration struggled to define the term, finally settling on this vague definition. “Simple, practical, popular; profoundly Christian and profoundly human.”

Neither does the book fail to present the side of anti-Peronists. After the military succeeded in driving out Peron in 1955, the successive government did everything in their power to erase his existence. Hedges describes the law passed which made it illegal to even mention his name and the meticulous work of removing embroidery threads from hospital linens belonging to the Eva Peron Foundation.

After Peron’s death in 1974, which occurred during his third term as president, the book somewhat skims over the next decade, especially the infamous military dictatorship of 1976-83. Likewise, not much is said about the Falklands/Malvinas War in 1982.

Alfonsín congratulating Menem in 1989

Things get interesting again when Hedges recounts Raúl Alfonsín’s victory, the first democratically elected president after the military dictatorship, and subsequently, Carlos Menem’s sensational turn in the Casa Rosada.

Argentina’s citizens in the 90s were finally enjoying some financial freedom and extra spending power owing to the convertibility plan that pegged the value of the peso to the US dollar. Happy to be living during crisis-free times, the country didn’t seem to care about its president’s very public divorce and questionable business dealings. They even turned a blind eye to the suspicious events surrounding his son’s death in a helicopter crash. Was it an accident or a murder? No one knows. In fact, parts of the aircraft, which supposedly had bullet holes, mysteriously disappeared during the official investigation.

Though skeptical about Argentina’s ability to turn things around in the near future, Hedges does give the country credit for not falling under military control during the 2001 economic crisis.  She maintains, however, that the same problems exist and that Argentina won’t mature as a nation state unless a basic, legal, economic and political framework is achieved.

Whether your interest in Argentina’s background is to help you with research on your Latin American doctoral thesis, or you just want to better understand Madonna’s film “Evita”, Hedges’ modern history of Argentina is both a useful resource and interesting read.

Photo from ‘Buenos Aires - Out of Series’

Many photographers try to capture the essence of a city by focusing on a few aspects which they see as epitomical of the place. Often the result is a very limited view, a look through one person’s peephole. In ‘Buenos Aires – Out of Series’, the photographers take to the streets like beggars. They don’t judge who hands them the coins, they will accept the visual fruits from wherever they may yield. The skyscrapers are there of course, with their majestic porteño sunsets reflected upon the glass. But your dog shit will be there too. A whole page dedicated to it in fact. This is the nature of this book; it doesn’t seek to give you a romantic vision of Buenos Aires, it lays it all out for you brass tacks and all.

The book came about through an unexpected collaboration between Guido Indij, a porteño, and two photographers from Switzerland: Daniel Spehr and Kathrin Schulthess. It seems that they both had similar callings to document the city’s “visual grammar” or “psychogeographical reliefs” as Guido refers to them. Whatever you call it, the harmony of vision between these photographers seems to resonate with an unselfish recording of the eclectic fabric that makes up the mighty capital. All those bums you didn’t have the guts to snap, all those drains you couldn’t be bothered with, all those crossed out swastikas that make you wonder how the hell underground skinhead cults still exist… they’re all in this tidy little book as if it were your own personal, patiently-built collection.

Photo from ‘Buenos Aires - Out of Series’

‘Out of Series’ takes you on a pictorial journey that is distinctly Buenos Aires. On first sighting, it’s almost like the photographic memory of your subconscious has been presented to you. All those intricacies that appear trivial at first but prove to be symbolic of a place’s character are captured here like the hidden habits of wild animals. It’s a stark portrait of the contradictions and chaos that make up Buenos Aires but the specimens collected here also echo even more universal rhythms. Wild-style graffiti, Carlos Gardel murals and decorated house numbers, for instance, seem to be the visual scream for colour and chaos amongst grey Urbania like a romantic’s backlash against modernism.

If it was the book’s intention to be thorough, then it has done well. The vastness of this visual archive is dense without being dull and observant without being tedious. Colour is embraced but the voids are not avoided. If you know Buenos Aires, take a look at this, it feels a bit like your scrapbook. If you haven’t, all the better. 

Photo from ‘Buenos Aires - Out of Series’

‘Buenos Aires – Out of Series’ is edited by Guido Indij, and is available to buy at Asunto Impreso, Perú 1064 in San Telmo for US$25.

 

There’s a lot to admire in Nathan Englander’s first novel ‘The Ministry of Special Cases’. It’s a soulful and deeply sad account of life under the last military dictatorship, tracking the plight of a Jewish couple in Buenos Aires as they search for their ‘disappeared’ son. Kaddish, the father and the novel’s protagonist, makes his bread by chiselling names off of gravestones, a service that he performs for descendents of a group of Jewish pimps and prostitutes who want to erase their families’ histories. Kaddish erases memory of the past as the government erases the possibility of the future. It’s a neat formal device that is at once resonant and a little too well assembled.

‘The Ministry of Special Cases’ may be too careful in its construction, but when Englander is at his best, he conveys the full weight of events without stooping to manipulation. In a short chapter that chronicles the life, capture, and death of a teenage girl, Englander delivers all the goods of the novel in a far more concise and gripping fashion. The chapter is not linked structurally to the rest of the plot, but its restraint and honesty distils the rest of the novel into a shimmering diamond. Englander’s first – and only other – book was a collection of short stories, and as this chapter shows, he’s more lucid and assured working on a smaller canvas.

While Englander’s structure may seem a touch too perfect, he obscures it under a surface of quirky and well-sketched characters. Kaddish emerges a man in full, depressed and resentful, but also resourceful, hopeful, and in his flawed way, noble. He’s a Raymond Chandler private dick transplanted to 1970s Buenos Aires.

Indeed, there’s a noir current that runs throughout ‘The Ministry of Special Cases’. Everything seems to take place late at night; there are silenced witnesses, boorish cops, unscrupulous doctors, and plenty of grime both physical and otherwise. Its ironic then that the novel’s biggest failing is traditionally one of noir’s great strengths: sense of place.

The Buenos Aires of Englander’s novel is a flat and opaque city, for most of the novel it seems like we could be anywhere. We’re almost never on the street, never getting a sense of how things look, taste, smell, feel. Conveying a certain sense of numbness is appropriate to the time and characters, but more than numb, the Buenos Aires of Englander’s novel just feels anonymous.

‘The Ministry of Special Cases’ is the work of a gifted writer, but it’s too keen on making you aware of its brainy construction to indulge in anything superfluous enough to make the novel really interesting. Creating a living, breathing, steaming Buenos Aires would have been a good place to start.

Photo by Pablo Abuliak

Most Argentines tend to be open and supportive to foreigners who risk putting their pride on the line to engage with their culture and language. But when I heard that two gringos with poor Spanish had tried to write a book in the language within two months of arriving, I wondered, worried, how they would be received.

Further, when I found out that the book in question was an account of their fantasies about women in Buenos Aires, I feared that these guys might be on a terrible crash course with reality. How could they possibly avoid looking like sad failures to the residents of their host country?

“People would often pose the obvious question, which somehow hadn’t forestalled our initial ambitions: ‘But do you speak Spanish?’” Writers Daniel Margulies and Andrew Barchilon explain.

“‘Yes’ we would reply – we were prepared for that one. ‘Actually, kind of,’ we would have to admit, ‘we’re writing this book to help us learn.’

“We would no doubt receive the response: ‘But you know the best way to learn Spanish is to get a girlfriend here?’ And we would politely explain that we found it easier to write, publish, and market a book in Spanish in seven weeks than to procure and satisfy a porteña for even a fraction of that time.

“But we suppose it was our own fault more than the city’s. After all, we decided to spend our days and nights writing a book of fantasies rather than living them.”

The resulting volume, ‘Todos Mis Amores Imaginarios’ (‘All My Imaginary Loves’) turns out to be an attractive publication, bound in tasteful plain brown paper and illustrated with enigmatic photos by Argentine photographer Pablo Abuliak.

The content includes a story laid out as a grammatical exercise, a flowchart about meeting women and a fantasy line of flight from colectivo number 29, making a feature of the difficulties of learning another language and engaging with the opposite sex in a foreign city.

The inside cover reads: “The writers don’t speak Castellano very well…They need more language and more love. But with a little imagination they can find everything they desire.”

Photo by Pablo Abuliak

I have a preconceived idea of these guys, based on the introductions they have given themselves in the book: “Daniel is nervous with women but he likes them. He has deep eyes and glasses”. “Andrew…had a love in Buenos Aires and now he is looking for another.” On meeting them however, what I actually notice are their matching moustaches, self deprecating New York mannerisms and enthusiasm for anecdotes.

“I was very aware that my language lacked subtlety to begin with and I was using words that I would never have the guile to use in English, such as penetrar (to penetrate).” Daniel tells me. “I was so embarrassed when I got my female Spanish teacher to translate it.

Photo by Pablo Abuliak

“I realised from then that the writing of the book would always be a collaboration, relying on others to feedback and temper the stories.” Daniel continues.

After chatting with the guys for a while it becomes clear that the experiences that occurred during the book’s production, were just as important as the stories contained within it. The two explain: “The book was so much more than the pages. It was the experience of putting it together in that short time and creating the community that swiftly emerged from those weeks.

“I suppose this is why we always take compliments about the quality of the stories with a bit of suspicion. That was never our goal. We even joked early on about sealing the binding on all four sides. And if it is true that the book has its moments, they emerged as a curious by-product that we are bemusedly proud of – like the mother duck seeing her ugly duckling all grown up.”

So I guess the inevitable question is: did the making of ‘Todos Mis Amores Imaginarios’ eventually bring them real love?

“In a roundabout way, yes,” Daniel replies. “Both of us fell in love with Argentina. But so as not to wrap that question up on an overly sappy note, Andrew did fall in love with Marina (one of the Argentine editors of the book), and she with him. And to watch them together makes one ponder that if the book had brought about no more than that, it would have been worthwhile.”

Todos Mis Amores Imaginarios by Daniel Margulies and Andrew Barchilon, with stories by Filippo Luini and photographs by Pablo Abuliak, is available at Malba bookstore, Avenida Figueroa Alcorta 3415