LA NUEVA NOVELA DE ARTURO P REZ-REVERTE

Por primera vez, despu s de treinta a os de exitosa carrera literaria, Arturo P rez-Reverte aborda de forma directa, en una espl ndida novela, el episodio m s trascendental de la historia reciente de Espa a: la Guerra Civil, para contar la memoria de nuestros padres y abuelos, que es nuestra propia historia. En la noche del 24 al 25 de julio de 1938, durante la batalla del Ebro, 2.890 hombres y 14 mujeres de la XI Brigada Mixta del ej rcito de la Rep blica cruzan el r o para establecer la cabeza de puente de Castellets del Segre, donde combatir n durante diez d as. Sin embargo, ni Castellets, ni la XI Brigada, ni las tropas que se le enfrentan en L nea de fuego existieron nunca. Las unidades militares, los lugares y los personajes que en esta novela aparecen son ficticios, aunque no lo sean los hechos ni los nombres reales en que se inspiran. Fue exactamente as como padres, abuelos y familiares de numerosos espa oles de hoy combatieron en ambos bandos durante aquellos d as y aquellos tr gicos a os. La batalla del Ebro fue la m s dura y sangrienta de cuantas se han librado en nuestro suelo, y sobre ella hay abundante documentaci n, partes de guerra y testimonios personales. Con todo eso, combinando rigor e invenci n, el autor m s le do de la literatura espa ola actual ha construido, no ya una novela sobre la Guerra Civil, sino una formidable novela de hombres y mujeres en cualquier guerra: un relato ecu nime y fascinante donde se recupera la memoria de nuestros padres y abuelos, que es tambi n nuestra propia historia. Con L nea de fuego, Arturo P rez-Reverte sit a con sobrecogedor realismo al lector entre quienes, voluntarios o a la fuerza, estuvieron no en la retaguardia, sino peleando en ambos bandos en los frentes de batalla. En Espa a se han escrito muchas y excelentes novelas sobre esa contienda desde distintas posiciones ideol gicas, pero ninguna como sta. Nunca antes la Guerra Civil se hab a contado as . «Cubr varias de ellas como reportero, y hay un momento en que descubres que una guerra civil no es la lucha del bien contra el mal... S lo el horror enfrentado a otro horror. -Arturo P rez-Reverte ENGLISH DESCRIPTION THE NEW NOVEL FROM ARTURO P REZ-REVERTE For the first time, after a successful thirty-year literary career, Arturo P rez-Reverte directly addresses, in a splendid novel, the most momentous episode in the recent history of Spain, the Civil War, to recount the memory our parents and grandparents, which is our own story. On the night of July 24-25, 1938, during the Battle of the Ebro, 2,890 men and 14 women from the 11th Mixed Brigade of the Republic Army crossed the river to establish the bridgehead of Castellets del Segre, where they would fight for ten days. However, neither Castellets, nor the 11th Brigade, nor the troops facing them in Line of Fire ever existed. The military units, places, and characters that appear in this novel are fictitious, although the facts and the real names that inspire them are not. It was exactly like this that parents, grandparents, and relatives of many Spaniards on both sides fought during those tragic days and years. The battle of the Ebro was the harshest and bloodiest of those that have been fought on our soil, and there is abundant documentation, war reports, and personal testimonies. Using that, combining rigor and research, the most widely read author in contemporary Spanish literature has constructed, not only a novel about the Civil War, but a formidable novel about men and women in any war: a fair and fascinating story where he recovers the memory of our parents and grandparents, which is also our own history. With Line of Fire, Arturo P rez-Reverte places the reader, with overwhelming realism, among those who, voluntarily or by force, were not on the sidelines, but were fighting on both sides on the battle front. In Spain, many excellent novels have been written about this conflict from different ideological angles, but none like this. Never before had the Civil War been told in this way. I covered several of them as a reporter, and there comes a time when you discover that a civil war is not the fight of good against evil... Only horror confronting another horror. -Arturo P rez-Reverte