LARRETA, ENRIQUE RODRGUEZ

born March 4, 1875, Buenos Aires died July 7, 1961, Buenos Aires Argentine novelist famous for La gloria de Don Ramiro (1908; The Glory of Don Ramiro), one of the finest historical novels in Spanish American literature. After taking a degree in law at the University of Buenos Aires, Larreta went to Madrid, where he met the French novelist Maurice Brrs, who influenced him to write his famous novel. Larreta spent five years in Spain researching his book and prided himself on its historical accuracy. He was appointed minister to France in 1910, and he spent a large part of his later years in Madrid. His major works include Zogoibi (1926; The Unfortunate One); Gerardo o la torre de las damas (1953; Gerardo, or the Tower of the Ladies); its sequel, En la pampa (1955; On the Pampaissued with Gerardo in one volume as El gerardo in 1956); and La naranja (1948; The Orange), a volume of memoirs and essays.