{"product_id":"i-the-supreme-9780525564690","title":"I the Supreme","description":"\u003ci\u003eI the Supreme\u003c\/i\u003e imagines a dialogue between the nineteenth-century Paraguayan dictator known as Dr. Francia and Policarpo Pati o, his secretary and only companion. The opening pages present a sign that they had found nailed to the wall of a cathedral, purportedly written by Dr. Francia himself and ordering the execution of all of his servants upon his death. This sign is quickly revealed to be a forgery, which takes leader and secretary into a larger discussion about the nature of truth: \"In the light of what Your Eminence says, even the truth appears to be a lie.\" \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Their conversation broadens into an epic journey of the mind, stretching across the colonial history of their nation, filled with surrealist imagery, labyrinthine turns, and footnotes supplied by a mysterious \"compiler.\" A towering achievement from a foundational author of modern Latin American literature, \u003ci\u003e I the Supreme \u003c\/i\u003eis a darkly comic, deeply moving meditation on power and its abuse--and on the role of language in making and unmaking whole worlds.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAugusto Roa Bastos was born in 1917 and is widely considered to be one of Paraguay's greatest novelists. Best known for his novels \u003ci\u003eI the Supreme\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eSon of Man\u003c\/i\u003e, he authored many works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. The recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and Spain's Cervantes Prize, Roa Bastos spent much of his life outside Paraguay, both as a foreign correspondent and in exile for his opposition to the ruling governments of his country. He died in 2005.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Vintage","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50514234474770,"sku":"9780525564690","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_3d1977b4-10f8-4bde-bd12-391c1858d600.jpg?v=1730976412","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/i-the-supreme-9780525564690","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}