Following in the footsteps of his much-loved Marcel Duchamp, who left behind an extraordinary volume of correspondence, in Fuera de aquí, Enrique Vila-Matas looks back over the origins of his works and the myriad anecdotes that lie beneath each of his books, charting the genesis of his unique poetic sensibility in a conversation with his French translator and friend, André Gabastou.

An exchange marked by a fresh perspective that lifts the lid on his extensive oeuvre, Vila-Matas emerges as the creator of the shandys and the bartlebys, the man behind new coinages, such as the Montano’s malady, the inventor of unforgettable characters such as Doctor Pasavento, while revisiting cities such as Paris, Veracruz, Lisbon and Dublin, in the wake of his break into the English language.

Shot through with the irony that characterizes his trademark style, he reveals the authors who have most influenced his own writing, from Kafka to Walser, a large cast of characters that help pinpoint his own personal literary tastes. It also sheds light on the places, books and images that have made Vila-Matas one of the most unique voices of our time and an inexhaustible wellspring of literary ideas.

Akin to an autobiography in the guise of a conversation, a not-to-be-missed title in the bibliography of one of the foremost names in contemporary literary fiction.

Fuera de aquí is rounded off with snapshots from the author’s personal album, a generous selection of extracts handpicked from Vila-Matas’ body of work and a sampling of texts never before published in book form.

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NOTE FROM THE EDITOR:
Fuera de aquí is the translation and adaptation of a collection of conversations between André Gabastou and Enrique Vila-Matas originally published  in France in 2010 with the title Vila-Matas: Pile et Face (Argol Éditions). Expanded and duly updated by its authors, Fuera de aquí now contains pieces hitherto unpublished in Spain, alongside photographs not included in the original version.