Writer's Corner Writer's Corner: Urbano Bettencourt: Interview on 97.3 WJFD-FM

Contraponto program series. February 21, 2021 at 11:00 am

Please join WJFD host Irene Amaral for a conversation with Prof. Urbano Bettencourt about the recent English-language translation of The Unknown Islands, by Raul Brandão (Tagus Press, 2020).

The Unknown Islands is considered one of the most beautiful works of travel literature in Portuguese and one of the most important homages to the Azorean archipelago. In the summer of 1924, Raul Brandão undertook a trip through the Azores and Madeira. Fascinated with the landscapes of the islands and seduced by the people, he went on to pen this foundational text of Azorean literature—elegantly capturing the natural beauty of the landscape as well as the culture and the imaginary of this storied place.

URBANO BETTENCOURT, a prominent writer and critic, holds a PhD in Portuguese Studies from the University of the Azores, where he lectured from 1990 until 2014. He is currently a researcher at the Research Center for Regional and Local Studies at the University of Madeira (CIERL-UMa) and the Center for Humanistic Studies at the University of the Azores (CEHu-UAc). Some of his recent publications include Sala de Espelhos (2020), a collection of 40 essays mostly on Azorean literature, Com Navalhas e Navios (2019), O Amanhã Não Existe: Inquietação Insular e Figuração Satírica em José Martins Garcia (2017), and Outros nomes, outras guerras (2013).

• Audio Interview (Mixcloud)

The Unknown Islands was published with the support of the Government of the Azores. The translation was supported, in part, by the Direção-Geral do Livro, dos Arquivos e das Bibliotecas/Portugal (DGLAB).

To purchase The Unknown Islands, please visit the University of Massachusetts Press website by clicking here. The book can also be purchased on Amazon by clicking here. 

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