Deep Rivers

Deep Rivers (Spanish: Los ríos profundos) is the third novel by Peruvian writer José María Arguedas. It was originally published by Editorial Losada in Buenos Aires in 1958, received the Peruvian National Culture Award (Premio Nacional de Cultura) in 1959, and was a finalist in the William Faulkner Foundation Ibero-American award (1963). Since then, critical interest in the work of Arguedas has grown, and the book has been translated into several languages. According to critics, this novel marked the beginning of the current neo-indigenista movement, which presented, for the first time, a reading of indigenous issues from a closer perspective. Most critics agree that this novel is one of Arguedas' masterpieces. The title of the work (Uku Mayu in Quechua) alludes to the depth of the Andean rivers, which rise in the top of the Andes. It also relates to the solid and ancestral roots of Andean culture, which, according to Arguedas, are the true national identity of Peru.