Raúl Castro, writer and pillar of Entropía publishing house, dies at 89

Raúl Castro, a foundational figure and pillar of the Entropía publishing house, died at the age of 89 in Buenos Aires.

Castro, who would have turned 90 in September, passed away on Friday morning after a week-long hospitalization for a pulmonary complication. He is remembered as the author of two novels, "Antuca" and "Circuito de memoria," and as the father of Valeria Castro, who runs Entropía, and writer and filmmaker Gonzalo Castro.

Entropía announced his passing on social media, stating, "Raúl Castro (1936-2026). Author of Antuca and Circuito de memoria. But above all, founding father and support of Entropía. He will remain present in every book from this publishing house." Castro's novels were published by Entropía in 2005 and 2016. While he did not found the publishing house, he supported the project from its inception and was one of its earliest authors with his novel "Antuca."

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Raúl Castro (1936-2026). Author of Antuca and Circuito de memoria. But above all, founding father and support of Entropía. He will remain present in every book from this publishing house.

In the 1960s, Castro was part of a literary group associated with the cultural magazine Cero, which was directed by Vicente Zito Lema and featured collaborators such as Antonio Berni, Julio Cortázar, Juan L. Ortiz, and Antonio Porchia. He also wrote poems that were included in anthologies.

His two narrative works are distinct. "Antuca" is a novel told through six voices, exploring the reunion of old friends during Argentina's return to democracy. It contrasts past and present, touching on the dark legacy of the last dictatorship, and is titled after one of the friends in the group. "Circuito de memoria" is explicitly autobiographical, beginning with a childhood fascination with a 19th-century physics treatise on electricity. For many years, Castro was involved with technology and invention. In his workshops, he created a mechanical television, an electroscope, a video recorder, an electrophorus, and a cybernetic mouse. This personal account of technology in Argentina, reflecting the country's political landscape with references to the 1955 coup, the 1966 Night of the Long Batons, and the exile of scientists, is captured in his "inventor's memoirs."

"I built hundreds of televisions, some were quite difficult to make due to the components they had," Castro said in an interview with Martín De Ambrosio. "It was a passion like any other. But it affected my language: I didn't think in words but in components. Through mechanisms, I translated from another language. That's why when the transistor appeared, it was like a change of language, like moving to another country. That shook me until I re-engaged."

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I built hundreds of televisions, some were quite difficult to make due to the components they had. It was a passion like any other. But it affected my language: I didn't think in words but in components. Through mechanisms, I translated from another language. That's why when the transistor appeared, it was like a change of language, like moving to another country. That shook me until I re-engaged.