Fuentes, Carlos (1928- )

Mexican writer, lawyer, and diplomat. His first novel La región más transparente/Where the Air Is Clear (1958) encompasses the history of the country from the Aztecs to the present day.

More than other Mexican novelists, he presents the frustrated social philosophy of the failed Mexican revolution. He received international attention for La muerte de Artemio Cruz/The Death of Artemio Cruz (1962), Terra nostra (1975), and El gringo viejo/The Old Gringo (1985). His non-fiction includes La nueva novela hispanoamericana/The New Hispano-American Novel (1969), his major work of literary criticism.

Born in Panamá, Panama, the son of a diplomat, he studied law at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and worked as a diplomat for the Mexican government in the 1950s and 1975-77.