Garcia Marquez's Last Book Published Against His Wishes

The final book by Gabriel Garcia Marquez was published Wednesday on what would have been the Colombian author's 97th birthday. Marquez died almost a decade ago and En Agosto Nos Vemos—Until August in English—is being published against his wishes. His sons say he ordered them to destroy the manuscript because it didn't make any sense—but the author suffered from dementia in the final years of his life and struggled to recognize even his earlier work. "We concluded that the book, though unfinished, made a lot of sense and was very moving," Rodrigo Garcia, the eldest of his two sons, tells NPR. "When he said it doesn't make sense he didn't realize it didn't make sense to him anymore."

The book was published in Spanish on Wednesday. The English version will be out on March 12. Rodrigo Garcia, a screenwriter, says that when he revisited the book with his younger brother, Gonzalo Garcia, it was much better than they remembered. Editor Cristobal Pera, who worked with Garcia Marquez on his memoirs, worked with six drafts of the book, including one marked "Gran OK final." "He had many notes on the margins, but the novel was complete," he says. "All the characters, everything." Pena says not a single word was added that didn't appear in the notes or any of the author's draft. He says Until August—which, unlike the author's earlier work, features a strong female protagonist—is an "amazing work of art" and he agrees with the brothers' decision to publish it.

Publisher Penguin Random House describes the book as a "profound meditation on freedom, regret, self-transformation, and the mysteries of love," CNN reports. The brothers say their father routinely destroyed unfinished manuscripts throughout his career and there is nothing else left to release. In the preface to Until August, they wrote that they hope their father will forgive them if readers love the book. The New York Times notes that there are numerous other examples of works being published posthumously against authors' wishes, including much of the work of Franz Kafka. Colombian novelist Hector Abad tells the Times that he was skeptical about the decision to publish until he read an advance copy. (More Gabriel Garcia Marquez stories.)