Chihuahuan Frontier

Novelist, playwright and editor Ignacio Solares was awarded the Gawi Tonara prize during the 7th Chihuahua International Festival for his extensive literary and academic work.

In handing him the statuette, Chihuahua Governor Cesar Duarte said Solares' talent and dedication has "left a deep footprint in Mexico's life, making Juarez and Chihuahua proud".

Gawi Tonara means "Pillars of the World" in Raramuri, one of the languages spoken by the native peoples of Chihuahua.

The award is the highest distinction the State of Chihuahua grants to outstanding creators in the cultural and literary fields.

Solares' body of work includes Delirium Tremens; La Invasion (The Invasion); Nen, la Inutil (Nen, the Useless One); Anonimo (Anonymous); Columbus; Madero, el otro (Madero, the Other One); El Sitio (The Siege); La Noche de Angeles (The Angeles Night); El Gran Elector (The Great Voter); Presencia de lo Invisible (Presence of the Invisible) and Cartas a una Joven Psicologa (Letters to a Young Psychologist).  

Also among his works are El Espia del Aire (Air Spy), No Hay Tal Lugar (There's No Such a Place), La Instruccion y Otros Cuentos (The Instruction and Other Stories), Imagen de Julio Cortazar, Cartas a un Joven sin Dios (Letters to a Godless Youth) and Ficciones de la Revolucion Mexicana (Fictions of the Mexican Revolution).

This was a day of deep reflection, images, emotions and mixed feelings, because "nothing compares to returning to the roots", said Solares referring to his native land.

"Being from Chihuahua is better than being from any other part of the world", he said, recalling a remark he heard from Chihuahuan writer Carlos Montemayor.

Solares received a grant from the Guggenheim Foundation, has been a culture and literature official at Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico and edits Revista de la Universidad de Mexico.