Description Javier Marías’s imperfect characters are memorable, dividing humanity into those who can look at themselves and speak with sheer, frightening honesty and, more commonly, those who would rather view themselves through the protection of a straw hat. Translated by Margaret Jull Costa, this first English-language edition of While the Women Are Sleeping (which was reprinted in the November 2009 New Yorker) is printed letterpress and includes six archival pigment prints of original monoprints by Wendy Mark. The monotypes chronicle the atmosphere of the story, from the sun-kissed beach to the dark confessions that conclude the characters’ summer getaway.
