"Lucille Kerr has undertaken to show us how Spanish American novelists have 'done' theory—in particular, the theory of the Author—by 'doing' literary fiction. . . . [She] wears her mastery of theory lightly, but it is clear that she knows whereof she speaks, not only when it comes to theories of the Author and authority, but also over a whole range of other relevant theoretical topics, including verisimilitude and truth, narrative structure and its relation to authority, and the problem of style."—Brian McHale, coeditor Poetics Today "Lucille Kerr performs a remarkably intelligent rereading of major modern Latin American texts. Her rich, multilayered study invites the reader to revise accepted notions of authority and dependence, of center and margins, of seduction and submission, of presence and fragmentation, opening a space for new and exciting critical discussion."—Sylvia Molloy, Albert Schweitzer Professor of Humanities, New York University "This book offers a fresh view of certain Spanish American novels . . . presenting them as texts in which the question of the author/authority is an essential part of their narrative structure. In doing so, it offers a new angle for the critical reading of these works and reveals a rich field for intellectual debate."—Jose Miguel Oviedo, University of Pennsylvania