A Simple Story: The Last Malambo

by Leila Guerriero, Frances Riddle (Translator)

Overview

Obsession and mastery in their purest states: the story of one dancer’s attempt to win the biggest contest of his life.

Every year, at the height of summer, the remote Argentine village of Laborde holds the national malambo contest. Centuries-old, this shatteringly demanding traditional gaucho dance is governed by the most rigid rules. And this festival has one stipulation that makes it unique: the malambo is danced for up to five minutes. That may seem like nothing, but consider the world record for the hundred-meter dash is 9.58 seconds. The dance contest is an obsession for countless young men, who sacrifice their bodies and money as they strive to become the champion, knowing that if they win—in order to safeguard the title’s prestige—they can never compete again. When Leila Guerriero traveled to Laborde, one dancer’s performance took her breath away, and she spent a year following him as he prepared for the next festival. The result is this superlative piece of journalism, told with tremendous economy and power.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780811226011
Publisher:	New Directions Publishing Corporation
Publication date:	02/07/2017
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	128
File size:	584 KB

About the Author

Leila Guerriero was born in Junín, Argentina, in 1967 and moved to Buenos Aires in 1984. She is one of Argentina’s foremost journalists and writers and has published four books.
Frances Riddle is a freelance editor, translator, and writer based in Buenos Aires.

Editorial Reviews

"Fascination and this quest to understand, which propels Guerriero's journey, is one readers will immediately become immersed in."

Five Minutes to Fame - American Book Review - Diane Goodman

"A Simple Story recounts delirious obsession and mastery, and proves beyond a doubt that journalism has a place in the literary bracket."

Largehearted Boy

"A Simple Story is about an expression of a culture that, unlike tango, has been passed over, neglected or forgotten by all but a few devotees, for whom it is an obsession. Its obscurity, this book suggests, is its salvation."

The Economist

"Guerrero irrefutably proves that journalism is one of the beaux arts. Below the light and agile surface that grabs your attention from the first lines, she shows a sureness and a seriousness that confer on her work a powerful consistency."

El País - Mario Vargas Llosa

"Hats off to Guerriero"

The Paris Review - Dan Piepenbring

"An epic of noble proportions—Guerriero is a mistress of the telling phrase or the revealing detail."

The Spectator - Sarah Crompton

2016-11-09
The story of one man's quest, simply and movingly told.Each January, the village of Laborde, in southeastern Argentina, holds a national folkloric dance competition for the best performance of the malambo. Rigorous, energetic, and demanding, the malambo can be described simply as "a battle between men who tap in turn to music." The competition requires that the dancer perform for five minutes—which feels like an eternity and leaves the performer drained and exhausted. With its intricate moves, athleticism, and musicality, the dance requires years of arduous training and intense concentration, but the effort is worth the outcome: national prestige. Winning the contest can be life-changing; the winner is acclaimed throughout the country, and he becomes a superstar, role model, and hero. With so much at stake, the competition is fierce. Journalist Guerriero traveled to Laborde to witness the event and became entranced by one competitor: the modest, handsome Rodolfo González Alcántara, a 28-year-old dance teacher from the town of La Pampa. When he performed, writes the author, "he made the night crackle." Born into poverty, eking out a living teaching, Rodolfo nevertheless ardently pursued his dream of becoming a master of malambo, taking lessons, practicing for hours each day, and assessing and evaluating every step. With gentle sensitivity, Guerriero portrays his family, his encouraging teacher, his loyal girlfriend (also a dancer), and his grateful pupils. Rodolfo has no illusions about his talent and has to convince himself repeatedly that he can be a champion. His story "was that of a man who had awakened the most dangerous of emotions: hope." Guerriero transforms Rodolfo's quest into a fable, reminiscent of the work of her countrymen Jorge Luis Borges and Julio Cortázar. She portrays Rodolfo with such obvious affection that readers cannot help cheer him on, but it would spoil the tension that the author masterfully creates to reveal the outcome of the competition.A timeless tale rendered in spare, evocative prose.

Kirkus Reviews