This is a mixed bag--literary criticism, personal anecdotes, travel stories, and passages on his own writing processes. He talks about Chekhov, there are essays on Evelyn Waugh and Henry James, and many others--international in scope.I really liked the material on writing short stories.

"On When Enrique Conquered Ashgabat and How He Lost It" (p.204-230) is a very funny episode that took place when Pitol and Enrique Vila-Matis managed to get together in Turkmenistan. It involved crashing a wedding party, a crazy opera singer and his crazier wife, embarrassed interpreters, and Vila-Matis being rushed out of the country.

This is the final volume of "Trilogía de la memoria/Trilogy of Memory" The first two are "The Art Of Flight" and "The Journey." The trilogy does not have to be read in order. ( )