This is an intriguing novella about one man's mystery.  

Distinguished professor of Latin American literature, Bluma Lennon, is so immersed in reading a volume of Emily Dickinson's poems that she does not look up as she crosses the street. She is hit by a car and dies.

Several months later, a package arrives for her from Argentina. It is a copy of a Conrad novel, encrusted in cement and inscribed with a mysterious dedication. Bluma's successor in the English department (and a former lover) travels to Buenos Aires to track down the sender, one Carlos Brauer, who it turns out, has disappeared.  

Carlos Maria Dominguez's voice is humbled by the years. It is effective. He is easy to trust.

This small, visual story captured my imagination early and held it for all 103 pages. I read it in one sitting and closed the back cover satisfied and better for having read it.  

Recommended.

Illustrations by Peter Sis

Translated from the Spanish by Nick Caistor

Harcourt Books, 2004, First U.S. Edition