Antaño i Ogaño: Novelas i Cuentos de la Vida Hispano-Americana

A vivid tapestry of nineteenth‑century Hispanic‑American life unfolds across ten short works, each offering a different window onto the streets, homes, and hearts of Chile’s capital and its surroundings. From the plaintive voice of a wandering beggar to the disciplined march of an alférez, from tender moments of love to the frantic pages of a woman’s private diary, the collection captures both grand public scenes and intimate private thoughts. The prose carries a lyrical quality that renders the bustling markets, the rust‑edged riverbanks and the misty Andes as characters in their own right, grounding every narrative in a lived, palpable reality.

The opening story begins with a leisurely stroll along the Mapocho’s promenade, where the narrator revels in the clash of ruins and gleaming towers, the chorus of children at play, and the golden glow of mountains at sunset. An unexpected encounter with a mysterious, long‑absent mendicant pulls the scene from reverie into quiet curiosity, hinting at hidden histories beneath the city’s surface. Listeners will find themselves wandering these evocative streets, hearing the whispers of generations that still echo today.