The publisher Seix Barral has reissued "A sus plantas rendido un león", one of the most singular novels by writer Osvaldo Soriano, originally published in 1986 and over the years has become one of the most remembered political satires of his work.
The novel also dialogues with geographical and political imaginaries: "The idea we still have of Africa as the end of the world is joined by that other end of the world that is the Malvinas".
Set in a fictitious African country during the 1982 Falklands War, the story combines adventure, political parody, and delirious humor. The humor—from absurd duels to overflowing patriotic speeches—becomes a tool to explore themes such as colonialism, ideological crisis, or collective frustration.
The protagonist is an Argentine consul who begins to wonder what General José de San Martín would do in his place. In this setting, stories of love, diplomatic intrigues, and episodes as unusual as the irruption of an army of monkeys in the middle of a revolution are added.
Soriano himself described the origin of the novel with his characteristic ironic tone. "In the end, I came out with a novel of political adventures in Africa, set in the midst of the Falklands War. I transposed the Argentine reality to that country without a future," he added.
Born in 1943 and died in 1997, Soriano had a singular career as a journalist and novelist. He lived in Belgium and then in Paris until his return to Argentina in 1984, after the 1976 military coup forced him into exile.
