Lino Novás Calvo
Lino Novás Calvo was a Spanish writer born in 1905 who immigrated to Cuba around 1920. He initially worked various menial jobs before entering the literary scene, gaining recognition with his poem "El camarada" published in the avant-garde journal Revista de Avance in 1928. Although he claimed a later birth date to forge a more Cuban identity, this led to his being predominantly identified as a Cuban writer. Novás Calvo emerged as one of the first Cuban crime novelists and explored themes related to Cuba's lower classes in his storytelling. His notable work, "La luna de los ñáñigos," incorporated elements of magical realism, blending authentic research with imaginative narrative, though his contributions to this genre have often been overlooked. His only novel, El negrero, received considerable critical acclaim for its nuanced portrayal of a Spanish slave trader. Throughout his career, Novás Calvo contributed to various literary magazines, taught French at Havana Teacher's College, and later settled in New York City, where he continued to write and teach. His literary achievements earned him several accolades, including the Hernandez-Cata Prize and a National Short Story Prize.
On this Page
Subject Terms
Lino Novás Calvo
Writer
- Born: September 22, 1905
- Birthplace: Granas del Sor, Spain
- Died: March 24, 1983
- Place of death: New York, New York
Biography
Lino Novás Calvo was born in Spain in 1905 and immigrated to Cuba around 1920. However, he claimed he was born several years later than his actual birth date to create a Cuban childhood for himself, matching the sympathetic persona of a young child cast on distant shores to fend for himself. This discrepancy in birth dates, not caught until after his death, has led Novás Calvo to be almost universally recognized as only a Cuban writer, not a Hispano- Cuban one.
When Novás Calvo first arrived in Cuba, he worked at a variety of menial jobs to earn a living. He entered the literary world when his poem “El camarada” was accepted for publication in the avant-garde Havana journal Revista de Avance in 1928. From there, Novás Calvo submitted more poems, short stories, and articles of review, and members of the literary world saw him as an emergent voice of the masses. With Novás Calvo’s acceptance into the circle of the literary elite, he made the acquaintance of leading intellectuals, journalists, and writers, including Jorge Mañach, Juan Marinello, Alejo Carpentier, Fernando Ortiz, and Martí Casanovas. His new friends, and his access to books and journals, enabled him to acquire sophistication and knowledge.
Novás Calvo’s was one of the first Cuban crime novelists and earned literary recognition for his short stories concerning Cuba’s lower class. One of Novás Calvo’s stories, “La luna de los ñáñigos,” takes place in a shanty town and demonstrates the melding of authentic research of events with magical dimensions in a now abandoned location. This fusion of the real and the magical in narrative discourse, accomplished in 1932, is an early display of magic realism, but critics and publicists have tended to overlook Novás Calvo’s contribution to this mode. His only novel, El negrero, has also held extraordinary interest for critics who admire the subtlety of its historical recreation of a Spanish-born slave trader.
Novás Calvo worked as a writer for Obre, a Spanish journal, beginning in 1931. From 1931 to 1939, he was editor of the Cuban magazine Ultra and wrote for various magazines and newspapers. In 1940, he accepted a position teaching French at Havana Teacher’s College. He immigrated to the United States in 1960, settling in New York City and contributing to two magazines, Bohemia Libre, andVanidades. From 1964 to 1967, Novás Calvo was a visiting professor of Spanish at Syracuse University in New York. He was awarded the Hernandez-Cata Prize in 1942 for his short story, “Un dedo encima,” and a National Short Story Prize in 1944 for his collection of short stories La luna nona, y otros cuentos. He also received an honorary degree in journalism from National School of Journalism, Havana, in 1943.