<div><p>&quot;The most important Argentinian writer since Borges.&quot;—<i>The Independent</i></p><p><i>The One Before</i> is a triptych of sorts, consisting of a series of short pieces—called &quot;Arguments&quot;—and two longer stories—&quot;Half-Erased&quot; and &quot;The One Before&quot;—all of which revolve around the ideas of exile and memory.</p><p>Many of the characters who populate Juan José Saer's other novels appear here, including Tomatis, Ángel Leto, and Washington Noriega (who appear in<i>La Grande</i>, <i>Scars</i>, and <i>The Sixty-Five Years of Washington</i>, all of which are available from Open Letter). Saer's typical themes are on display in this collection as well, as is his idiosyncratic blend of philosophical ruminations and precise storytelling.</p><p>From the story of the two characters who decide to bury a message in a bottle that simply says &quot;MESSAGE,&quot; to Pigeon Garay's attempt to avoid the rising tides and escape Argentina for Europe,<i>The One Before</i> evocatively introduces readers to Saer's world and gives the already indoctrinated new material about their favorite characters.</p><p><b>Juan José Saer</b> was the leading Argentinian writer of the post-Borges generation. The author of numerous novels and short-story collections (including<i>Scars</i> and <i>La Grande</i>), Saer was awarded Spain's prestigious Nadal Prize in 1987 for<i>The Event</i>.</p><p><b>Roanne Kantor</b> is a doctoral student in comparative literature at the University of Texas at Austin. Her translation of<i>The One Before</i> won the 2009 Susan Sontag Prize for Translation. Her translations from Spanish have appeared in<i>Little Star</i> magazine, <i>Two Lines</i>, and <i>Palabras Errantes</i>.<br></p></div>