González García, Matías 1866–1938

PERSONAL: Born December 9, 1866, in Naguabo, PR; died March 11, 1938, in Gurabo, PR. Education: Earned B.A.; studied medicine for two years at University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain.

CAREER: Journalist and freelance writer. School teacher in San Juan, PR, until 1902; elected to Puerto Rican House of Representatives, 1904; City of Gurabo, PR, town clerk, 1916–20, mayor, 1920–24. Publisher of tabloids, including El Correo del Este and Rocinante, 1910–14.

AWARDS, HONORS: Gold Medal, 1892, for short story "La primera cría."

WRITINGS:

Cosas de antaño y cosas de orgaño (novel), 1893, reprinted, Caguas (Borinquin, PR), 1922.

El escándelo, Córdova (San Juan, PR), 1894.

Ernesto, El Buscapié (San Juan, PR), 1895.

Cosas, Córdova (San Juan, PR), 1898.

Mis cuentos, 1899.

Carmela (novel), Heraldo Español (San Juan, PR), 1903, third edition, Coquí (San Juan, PR), 1966.

El tesoro de Ausubal, Caguas (Borinquin, PR), 1913.

Morel campos, 1922.

Gritos de Angustina (play), produced in Puerto Rico, 1929.

Amor que vence (play), produced in Puerto Rico, 1929.

Por me tierra y por me dama (play), produced in Puerto Rico, 1929.

Cosas de antaño y cosas de agaño, Editorial Orión (Mexico City, Mexico), 1953.

Cuentos: primera selección (short stories), 2nd edition, compiled and with prologue by Juan Martínez Capó, Instituto de Cultural Puertoriqueña (San Juan, PR), 1992.

(With Nilda González) Guerra: Una novela sobre la guerra del 1898 en Puerto Rico (contains novel Guerra, originally written, 1899), commentary by Nilda González, Editorial LEA (San Juan, PR), 2000.

Contributor to periodicals, including El Buscapié, Revista Puertoriqueña de Literatura, Ciencias y Arte, La Illustración Puertoriqueña, La Democracia, El Mundo, and Puerto Rico Illustrado.

SIDELIGHTS: Puerto Rican author Matías González García held various jobs throughout his life, ranging from school teacher to tabloid publisher to local politician. He is often remembered, however, for his many short stories celebrating Puerto Rican language, customs, and culture. Often flavoring his tales with light humor, González García's "work," according to a contributor to Caribbean Writers, "is mildly naturalistic, occasionally humorous, even satirical in touches."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

Herdeck, Donald E., editor, Caribbean Writers: A Bio-Bibliographical-Critical Encyclopedia, Three Continents Press (Washington, DC), 1979.

Hill, Marnesba D., and Harold B. Schleifer, Puerto Rican Authors, Scarecrow Press (Lanham, MD), 1974.