„The essays contained in this collection may be generally subsumed under a few large themes: internal and external exile, real or perceived, a broad 20th century European aesthetics of poetry and prose, and bridging the understanding of masterful works of literature from either side of the Atlantic that follow particular patterns of expression. The endeavour to find commonality in these pieces is the work of comparativist Rodica Grigore, professor of literature at “Lucian Blaga” University of Sibiu, Romania. Transnational aesthetics, shaped by common philosophical sources, are noted in this work: European modernism was introduced to Latin America in the writings of Jorge Luis Borges, from which all contemporary and successive Latin American novelists have drawn, a pivotal point made more than once in these essays. Narrowing down the scope of examination to Romanian, Spanish, Latin American, French and Portuguese writings, Rodica Grigore brings particular points in 20th century Romanian poetics, marking their passage to parallel concerns in the Western Hemisphere via France, translations, political flux and upheaval, and the common questions of rule by law or by decree, dictatorship, introspection, and internal or external exile, either by author or character.” Preface by Jay Corwin, University of Capetown
