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Roberto Bolaño

Born

in Santiago de Chile, Chile

April 28, 1953

Died

July 15, 2003

Genre

Literature & Fiction, Poetry, Contemporary

Influences

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For most of his early adulthood, Bolaño was a vagabond, living at one time or another in Chile, Mexico, El Salvador, France and Spain. Bolaño moved to Europe in 1977, and finally made his way to Spain, where he married and settled on the Mediterranean coast near Barcelona, working as a dishwasher, a campground custodian, bellhop and garbage collector — working during the day and writing at night.

He continued with his poetry, before shifting to fiction in his early forties. In an interview Bolaño stated that he made this decision because he felt responsible for the future financial well-being of his family, which he knew he could never secure from the earnings of a poet. This was confirmed by Jorge Herralde, who explained that Bolaño "aband For most of his early adulthood, Bolaño was a vagabond, living at one time or another in Chile, Mexico, El Salvador, France and Spain. Bolaño moved to Europe in 1977, and finally made his way to Spain, where he married and settled on the Mediterranean coast near Barcelona, working as a dishwasher, a campground custodian, bellhop and garbage collector — working during the day and writing at night.

He continued with his poetry, before shifting to fiction in his early forties. In an interview Bolaño stated that he made this decision because he felt responsible for the future financial well-being of his family, which he knew he could never secure from the earnings of a poet. This was confirmed by Jorge Herralde, who explained that Bolaño "abandoned his parsimonious beatnik existence" because the birth of his son in 1990 made him "decide that he was responsible for his family's future and that it would be easier to earn a living by writing fiction." However, he continued to think of himself primarily as a poet, and a collection of his verse, spanning 20 years, was published in 2000 under the title The Romantic Dogs.

Regarding his native country Chile, which he visited just once after going into voluntary exile, Bolaño had conflicted feelings. He was notorious in Chile for his fierce attacks on Isabel Allende and other members of the literary establishment.

In 2003, after a long period of declining health, Bolaño passed away. Bolaño was survived by his Spanish wife and their two children, whom he once called "my only motherland."

Although deep down he always felt like a poet, his reputation ultimately rests on his novels, novellas and short story collections. Although Bolaño espoused the lifestyle of a bohemian poet and literary enfant terrible for all his adult life, he only began to produce substantial works of fiction in the 1990s. He almost immediately became a highly regarded figure in Spanish and Latin American letters.

In rapid succession, he published a series of critically acclaimed works, the most important of which are the novel Los detectives salvajes (The Savage Detectives), the novella Nocturno de Chile (By Night In Chile), and, posthumously, the novel 2666. His two collections of short stories Llamadas telefónicas and Putas asesinas were awarded literary prizes.

In 2009 a number of unpublished novels were discovered among the author's papers. ...more

Combine Editions
Roberto Bolaño’s books

Average rating: 3.99 · 213,893 ratings · 24,264 reviews · 152 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolaño, Natasha Wimmer (Translator) 4.17 avg rating — 48,758 ratings — published 1998 — 17 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	2666 4.21 avg rating — 45,600 ratings — published 2004 — 170 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	By Night in Chile 3.90 avg rating — 15,230 ratings — published 2000 — 97 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Distant Star by Roberto Bolaño, Chris Andrews (Translator) 3.93 avg rating — 13,385 ratings — published 1996 — 79 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Amulet by Roberto Bolaño, Chris Andrews (Translator) 3.84 avg rating — 9,631 ratings — published 1999 — 69 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Nazi Literature in the Americas by Roberto Bolaño, Chris Andrews (Translator) 3.90 avg rating — 7,194 ratings — published 1996 — 20 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Putas asesinas 3.84 avg rating — 6,347 ratings — published 2001	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Third Reich by Roberto Bolaño, Natasha Wimmer (Translator) 3.55 avg rating — 6,047 ratings — published 1989 — 53 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Last Evenings on Earth by Roberto Bolaño, Chris Andrews (Translator) 4.11 avg rating — 5,052 ratings — published 1997 — 14 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Una novelita lumpen 3.63 avg rating — 5,583 ratings — published 2002 — 39 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Roberto Bolaño…

Series by Roberto Bolaño

2666 (2 books)
by

Roberto Bolaño

4.21 avg rating — 45,831 ratings

Here at Goodreads World Headquarters, we sort through a lot of books each month. Our Readers' Most Anticipated Books feature is exactly...

Polls

What book would you like to read for our July 2024 Group Read? The theme is Road Trip.

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien
(high fantasy, classics, adventure)

28 votes 28.6%

The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
(historical fiction, adventure, coming of age)

20 votes 20.4%

The Maze Runner byJames Dashner
(young adult, dystopian, science fiction)

13 votes 13.3%

November Road by Lou Berney
(historical fiction, thriller, crime)

7 votes 7.1%

The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolaño
(literary fiction, Latin America, classics)

7 votes 7.1%

Together We Will Go by J. Michael Straczynski
(mental health, romance, travel)

7 votes 7.1%

Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life Interrupted by Suleika Jaouad
(memoir, travel, health)

6 votes 6.1%

On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta
(young adult, mystery, romance)

4 votes 4.1%

Here We Go Again by Alison Cochrun
(romance, LGBTQIA+, contemporary)

3 votes 3.1%

All Fours by Miranda July
(literary fiction, LGBTQIA+, humor)

3 votes 3.1%

98 total votes

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