Ana María Matute, “Luciérnagas”, edición de María Luisa Sotelo Vázquez, Madrid, Cátedra, 2014.

Abstract

This is a review of Luciérnagas, a book by Ana María Matute, an important writer who has contributed to a better understanding of the Spanish Civil War and other episodes of our history from a female perspective. This edition by María Luisa Sotelo Vázquez introduces the work with a historical and biographical context of the author, to better understand it and show that Matute liked to include fantastical elements and that she had more than enough capacity to change literary and thematic genres. The review mentions all the influences of the writer, both Spanish and international, from Lewis Carroll to Tolstoy. The censorship suffered by the novel and its rewriting and subsequent acceptance in 1993 are commented on. Sotelo's preliminary study is praised, which makes this new edition quite rich in context and information.