Crematorio

Rafael Chirbes (1949-2015) is one of the most renowned Spanish novelists of recent decades, and "Crematorio," published in October 2007, is arguably the great novel he aspired to write about the Spain of his time. Set against the backdrop of the booming real estate sector, the writer recreates the experiences and thoughts of the builder Rubén Bertomeu, his second wife Mónica, his former business partner Ramón Collado, and his daughter Silvia, during the sweltering July morning following the death of Rubén's brother, Matías, in the fictional Mediterranean town of Misent. The contrasting circumstances and judgments of the characters highlight the tensions between them and the generational and class conflicts of the groups they represent: business owners, workers, politicians, intellectuals, and immigrants. This edition includes an introductory study that details Chirbes' literary career and analyzes the essential aspects of one of his best works, as well as an annotation that seeks to facilitate the understanding of the novel and to decipher its conceptual and stylistic keys.