Contemporary Spanish Fiction: Generation X
by Dorothy Odartey-Wellington
This book examines the work of six novelists of the Generation X group of writers in Spain: José Angel Mañas (Historias del Kronen, 1994); Ray Loriga (La pistola de mi hermano, 1995); Gabriela Bustelo (Veo veo, 1996); Ismael Grasa (De Madrid al cielo, 1994); Belen Gopegui (Lo real, 2001 and La conquista del aire, 1998); and Antonio Orejudo Utrilla (Ventajas de viajar en tren, 2000) and Fabulosas narraciones por historias, 1996). The book shows that there has been a generational shift in contemporary Spanish fiction due to the erosion of traditional modes of self-determination in the globalized, commodified, and media-saturated environment of 1990s Spain. Within this context, the book explores the impact of audiovisual and popular culture on contemporary Spanish fiction; the notion of "the market dictatorship" as the new regime against which Generation X novelists write and how current publishing conventions and marketing strategies impact on creative expression in contemporary Spanish fiction. Dorothy Odartey-Wellington is an Associate Professor of Spanish at the University of Guelph.
