First published in 1962 by Ediciones Era, this innovative novella confirmed Fuentes's skill as one of Mexico's principal "boom" narrators. He has received numerous literary honors, including the prestigious Cervantes (1987) and Principe de Asturias (1994) awards. Forty years after its first publication and after several successful works like La muerte de Artemio Cruz (The Death of Artemio Cruz, Punto de Lectura, 2001) and, most recently, En esto creo (I Believe in This, see pg. 56), Aura continues to be reprinted and translated. In this complex short story, Fuentes challenges the general notion of time through an innovative narrative technique that uses second-person narration in the present and future tenses, removing the boundaries between present, past, and future. Young historian Felipe Montero accepts a live-in position editing the memoirs of General Llorente, whose elderly widow, Consuelo, wants to publish before her death. Intoxicated by the airless atmosphere of the house, Felipe dreams of having sex and escaping with Consuelo's young beautiful niece, Aura. But as he reads the General's writings about Consuelo's infertility, her fantasy of having a child, and her obsession with youth, he discovers that Aura is actually a projection of the 109-year-old widow. One day, while he embraces her, Aura transforms into the decrepit woman. Felipe is immediately ensnared by his own desire and actions into the role of the General, coupled with Consuelo to give birth to "Aura," the epitome of youth and the illusion of life. With intense prose, Fuentes masterfully recreates the suffocating and dreamlike atmosphere of the house and mixes the fantastic and the tangible, keeping readers curious asthey attempt to distinguish between the two. Worthy of its 42 printings by Era, this Mexican classic is recommended for academic libraries and bookstores. Carmen Ospina, "Criticas" Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.