Joaquim Machado de Assis (1839-1908), the descendent of African slaves, is considered one of the greatest Latin American authors of the last century. His novels include The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas, and Dom Casmurro. Gregory Rabassa is the preeminent American translator of Spanish and Portuguese, whose works include One Hundred Years of Solitude and The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas.Celso Ravaretto teaches at the University of Sao Paolo. David T. Haberly teaches at the University of Virginia.

"With Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis...we arrive at a genuine subversive, bent on overturning convention but always with an air of leisurely nonchalance.... A spirited translation."--The New York Times Book Review"A graceful new translation of a major novel by the master ironist who remains Brazil's greatest writer of fiction.... A great, teasing, profoundly entertaining book: An unforgettable portrayal of a materially oriented Don Quixote that's also that rariety in any literature--a genuine philosophical novel."--Kirkus