Yaneliz González Leyva at Editorial Letras Cubanas recently shared news of the passing of Emmanuel Tornés Reyes: “We deeply regret the passing of our beloved author, researcher, essayist and literary critic who, with his intelligence and sensitivity, enriched the catalog of our publishing house and, with it, the intellectual landscape of Cuba.” Below are excerpts from “Emmanuel Tornés Reyes: A Literary Luminary of Cuba Passes Away,” an article by Aaron Delgado (CubaHeadlines).
Captivating a classroom full of university students with pure literature, leaving a lasting impression on both young and seasoned audiences with his elegance, decency, and unwavering passion for teaching, and spending years delving into vast volumes of Latin American narratives to later weave together rich anthologies characterized by their content, diversity, and critical framework…
These achievements and many more define the legacy of professor and essayist Emmanuel Tornés Reyes (1948-2026), who has recently passed away in Havana, as reported by the Cuban Institute of the Book (ICL) and echoed by various official media outlets.
Born in Manzanillo, Granma, Tornés held a degree in Spanish Education from the Enrique José Varona Higher Pedagogical Institute and in Hispanic Language and Literature from the University of Havana. He also earned his doctorate in Philological Sciences at the latter institution.
From 1979 to 1990, Tornés served as a researcher at the Literary Research Center of Casa de las Américas and as editor-in-chief of its namesake magazine. Later, he worked at the Provincial Center for Books and Literature in Havana, and from 1994, he dedicated himself as a senior researcher at the Institute of Literature and Linguistics.
A specialist in both the Boom and Post-Boom periods of Latin American Literature, Tornés authored significant works such as “What is the Post-Boom?” [¿Qué es el postboom?] and “Manuel Rojas: Critical Studies,” [Manuel Rojas: estudios críticos] along with story anthologies like “Between the Pores and the Stars” [Entre los poros y las estrellas], “Rainbow of Dreams” [Arcoíris de ensueños], “The Ocean in a Fish” [El océano en un pez] and “Telling is a Pleasure” [Contar es un placer].
Regarding the title of the latter, he once remarked in an interview, “For me, reading is truly an act of the most extraordinary pleasure. I say it is my second life, the freest territory a human being possesses.”
He was a member of the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba, the ICL’s Ateneo of Theory and Criticism, and the Economic Society of Friends of the Country. His prolific work earned him numerous accolades, including the Literary Research Award from the Academy of Sciences of Cuba and the Alejo Carpentier Prize 2025 in the Essay category, as detailed in the official note. [. . .]
Read the full article at https://www.cubaheadlines.com/articles/321279#google_vignette
Also see https://www.juventudrebelde.cu/cultura/2026-02-19/fallece-el-destacado-intelectual-cubano-emmanuel-tornes-reyes and https://letralia.com/firmas/tornesreyesemmanuel.htm
Yaneliz González Leyva at Editorial Letras Cubanas recently shared news of the passing of Emmanuel Tornés Reyes: “We deeply regret the passing of our beloved author, researcher, essayist and literary critic who, with his intelligence and sensitivity, enriched the catalog of our publishing house and, with it, the intellectual landscape of Cuba.” Below are excerpts from