"In the Distance," Hernán Díaz's first novel, has just been...
The powerful opening brings back to the forefront the first book of a writer now linked to Trust.
Pierre-Louis Crescitz
new york, de san francisco, alaska, hernán diaz, trust, york, loin, francisco
Key facts
A naked giant emerges from a hole in the Alaskan pack ice. It is with this image that In the Distance opens, the first novel by Hernán Díaz, the…
The powerful opening puts the first book of a writer now associated with Trust back in the foreground. The retranslation puts this account of a…
The character, Hakan, wanted to go to New York, which he pronounces “Nujark,” in the Scandinavian manner. Without a penny in his pocket, he then…
A naked giant emerges from a hole in the Alaskan pack ice. It is with this image that In the Distance opens, the first novel by Hernán Díaz, the author of Trust, which has just been retranslated.
The powerful opening puts the first book of a writer now associated with Trust back in the foreground. The retranslation puts this account of a departure without resources back into circulation.
The character, Hakan, wanted to go to New York, which he pronounces “Nujark,” in the Scandinavian manner. Without a penny in his pocket, he then decides to cross the country on foot to reach the city, according to Le Figaro.
Dig deeper
Who is Hernán Díaz?
An Argentine-American writer, he made his name with this first novel before Trust placed him among the most widely read American authors.
What is Trust?
Díaz’s second novel, it explores fortune and self-narrative in early-20th-century New York and received the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.
What is In the Distance about?
It is the story of a penniless Scandinavian immigrant who, instead of reaching New York, walks across 19th-century America.
Who is Hakan?
Hakan is the protagonist: a young man who set out for New York, which he calls “Nujark,” and who loses himself in the vastness of the continent.
Why do Alaska and New York matter here?
Alaska opens the novel with an image of extreme solitude, while New York remains the dreamed-of city that Hakan cannot even name.