Edmundo Paz-Soldán of Cornell University will read at Prairie Lights Books, 15 S. Dubuque St., at 5:30 p.m. today from two of his books as well as segments of his forthcoming novel. The professor of Latino literature will also present a lecture at 4 p.m. Tuesday in the International Programs’ Commons, 1117 University Capitol Centre.

Paz-Soldán will read from Desencuentros and Los vivos y los muertos, and from his upcoming Notre in Spanish.

He received a B.A. in political science from the University of Alabama-Huntsville in 1991 and an M.A. in Hispanic languages and literature from the University of California-Berkely in 1993.

The author has won the Bolivian national book award two times, once in 1992 and again in 2003, as well as the Juan Rulfo Short Story Award for his work, Dochera in 1997. He is the co-editor of Latin American Literature and Mass Media, a volume of essays he assessed in line with Latin American media theories.

His work is considered to be a part of the “McCondo” movement of a new generation of Latin American writers. Their writing blends Latin American culture with the Americanization of their countries. His Tuesday lecture is titled “A Latin American Writer in the U.S.A.: Three Postcards,” and Paz-Soldán will speak about his experiences as a Bolivian writer living in the United States and the complex challenges that presents.

He teaches Modern and Contemporary Spanish-American Literature, Andean Literature, Narrative and Mass Media, and creative writing at Cornell.

The reading and lecture is sponsored by the Latin American Studies Program, International Programs, Prairie Lights, and the UI Departments of English and Spanish and Portuguese.

— by Jennifer Downing