The Key to Reality
Ilarie Voronca
Translated by Sue Boswell
“Everything I imagine exists. So what exists is greater than what I imagine.”
Originally published in 1944, and here presented for the first time in English, expertly translated from the French by Sue Boswell, The Key to Reality, by the avant-garde Romanian author Ilarie Voronca, is one of the great surrealist short story collections. Featuring fifteen pieces of prose, including a selection of dream-like “notes”, the present book introduces the reader to an office worker who has in his desk drawer, amongst other things, a horse and a tree; a story-teller who has a path running through his bedroom; a street vendor whose customers might be imaginary, as might be his wares.
At once enchanting, visionary, and poignant, The Key to Reality is a masterpiece of narrative reflection that operates like a series of magic spells which, with great poetic beauty, transform the ordinary into the extraordinary.
About the Author
“Ilarie Voronca” was the pen name of Eduard Marcus (1903-1946), one of the greatest avant-garde writers of his time. A Jewish Romanian by birth, he published numerous texts in his home country before permanently establishing himself in France, where he produced volumes of poetry and prose in the French language, including L’Apprenti fantôme et Cinq poèmes de septembre (1938), La Clé des réalités (1944), and Souvenir de la planète Terre (1945).
About the Translator
Sue Boswell studied French Language and Literature at UCL and for a time taught French at Goldsmiths University of London. She then moved into university administration, specialising in university external relations and communications. Later she became a translator for the Wiener Holocaust Library. Her translations include The Assassins and other Stories by Marcel Schwob and The Last Train by Arnaud Rykner (both Snuggly Books 2020). Sue lives with her husband, Colin Boswell, in London and Ouveillan, a village near Narbonne in the Languedoc.
Paperback, 162 pages
Release date, March 29, 2022
ISBN-13: 978-1-64525-091-3
Price: US$16.50