Felipe Maíllo Salgado
Felipe Maíllo Salgado (Born in Monforte de la Sierra, Salamanca in 1944). Philologist, historian and Spanish Novelist. Professor of Arabic and Islamic Studies at Salamanca University, accredited as Professor by the Spanish University Council in 2008. Awarded the "María de Maeztu" prize to research excellence by Salamanca University, in 2010. Biography. He lived in several countries since his early teens: France, USA, Central America and Singapore. After working as a merchant seaman for many years he returned to Spain around the time of the Spanish transition to democracy. Graduated in Spanish Philology and Geography & History by Salamanca  University (1978) and in Semitic Philology by University of Granada (1979), earning a doctorate in Spanish Philology at Salamanca University by 1981. Later he studied Arabic Language and Islamic Law at Cairo University (between 1983 and 1986). While teaching both at Salamanca University and at National University of Tres de Febrero in Buenos Aires, his research activities are centered in three different fields: 1- The study of Language as an essential tool for historical analysis. 2- The translation of historical sources, as well as other texts from Classical Arabic to Spanish. 3- Islamic Law. Starting in 1990 he entered the  fiction field publishing since then five novels with the publishing house Editorial Cálamo (AKA Cálamo de Sumer) in Buenos Aires. Historical Discourse Analysis (Theoretical Methodological Lesson). Arabic Expressions in Castillian Spanish during the Late Middle Ages (Historical and Philological Considerations). Basic Vocabulary of Islamic History. Zamora and its People in Medieval Arabic Sources. Salamanca and its People in Arabic Sources (Critical Considerations concerning the Arab Domination, Population and the Frontier). Vocabulary of Arabic and Islamic History. Why did Al-Andalus Disappear?. The Extinction of Al-Andalus. Dictionary of Islamic Law. About Arab Historiography. On the Arab conquest of Hispania. Imprecisions , mistakes and nonsense. Dictionary of Arabic and Islamic History. The Wives of the Prophet. Through the Orient (Ibn Jubayr’s Rihla). Study, Translation, Notes and Indexes. Anonymous Chronicle of the Petty Kings. Study, Translation and Notes. The Fall of the Cordoba Caliphate and the Petty Kings (Al-Bayan al-Mugrib II by Ibn Idhari). Study, Translation, Notes and Indexes. The book of the Categories of Nations (Tabaqat al-umam by Said Al-Andalusi. Study, Translation, Notes and Indexes). Spain, Al-Andalus, Sefarad: Synthesis and New Perspectives. Diego of Guadix, Compilation of some Arabic Names that the Arabs put to some  cities and many other things. José Tamayo y Velarde, "Memoirs of captivity, Costumes, Rites and Governments of Berberia, As related by a 17th Century Jesuit." Salustiano Moreta Velayos, "María de Molina within her own history. Incestuous marriage" (Edition, Introduction and genalogical charts by Felipe Maíllo Salgado. Works. Exhibition Catalogues. He is the author to the totality or part of the following Catalogues: The Jews and Science in the Spanish Peninsula during the Middle Ages. The Country of the Queen of Sheba. Treasures of Ancient Yemen. The Journey to the East of the Andalusian Ibn Jubayr. Relationships of the Peninsular Western  Hispanic Kingdoms and the Maghreb during Medieval Times. Felipe Maíllo Salgado’s Fiction. He is an author whose novels have narrative strength and efficacy. “When I write, I try to make the story entertaining. My intention is not to shock people, regardless of how risqué is what I am putting across. If it makes you laugh or cry, like it or not, that is up to the reader. Simply, what I try to do is to tell a story that hooks you up, not to bore you”. Trilogía del desarraigo. The "Trilogy of the Uprooted", is a set of independent  novels brought together by the common denominator of the uprootedness. "Uncertain Defeats, or Uncertain Courses", narrates about the long initiation of the main character. It deals really with a double journey: the outer journey with its adventures and the inner journey, of memory and reflection. It is the drifting of a marginal and vitalistic man, obsessed with the passage of time. He talks and thinks in first person, giving a certain intimate tone to the story. It is an adventure narration; a man losing his way with no direction and no God. In a tireless search for someone and its  subsequent loss. The best about this novel is the dramatic progression, which enthralls the reader. "The Impassive Silence of the Gods", is a story of characters battered by life and circumstances, trying desperately to cling to somebody and settle down hoping to belong somewhere (The topic of solitude is a constant in this author). The ethics of the real life adventurer, an almost amoral being are predominant; even so, rude and vulgar words are dignified as they merge with easiness within the narration. It is a harsh novel, with intimate touches, specially when characters nostalgically recall better situations from past  times or when, trapped by feelings in an existence with no way out, imagine and chase a final redeeming reward. "Fabled Oblivion", Thanks to an original structure with various intermingled genres, the author gives an account of an investigation about the life of a man who, due to the circumstances protects a defenseless elderly woman. Throughout the novel both lives are intertwined, in a narration filled with reflection and wanderings. This story is ultimately about the big topics of life, and therefore Love, Loneliness, Old age and Death are profusely discussed. Other Novels. In addition to the "Trilogy of the  Uprooted", The author as published a novel called "The Mornings of the Salamander". It is a reflection of the History of Spain by means of a family saga spanning from the end of the 19th century to the first decade of the 21st century (great-grandparents, grandparents, parents, children and grandchildren). It is a collection of the ups and downs of its members, happening both in the mountains and in the city, as well as social and generational changes taking place in the country during the century. The tale is presented in two planes: one set in the present and  the other in the past. Past and present unfold thanks to the parade of characters from different generations, fusing with as time passes by. In the meantime the reflections of a hundred-year-old man act as a chorus. The action takes place alternating the city with the hamlet. In certain passages an omniscient narrator whose voice joins with that of the characters, which adds to the variety of the different points of view. "Autumn Suite" is the story of a middle age sailor desperatedly fighting against the unfolding events of his existence. During this work, the word "nothing" becomes  a recurring theme, implying to the reader the futility of making efforts to revert destiny. The author displays throughout the whole work a wide variety of uses of the first person while the main character reflects on life.