Roberto Bolano

buck65

Anyone here read the Savage detectives or 2666?
Reading the latter at the moment, actually expect to be reading it for quite a while. Finished the first part and it is quite different.

2040

Yeah, i read the savage detectives and am currently in the middle of 2666. I really like the structure of the books. I thought it was strange reading books with such apocalyptic themes, based primarily in Mexico, while there was a bird flu epidemic and earthquake going on there. Apparently though 2666 is far from the finished article, which is a pity.

buck65

It seems that there is talk of a Book 6 found after Bolano's death. There is a raft of re-issues and translations on the way it seems.
What did you make of the first book? Very interesting life these academics lead!

2040

buck65 wrote: »

It seems that there is talk of a Book 6 found after Bolano's death. There is a raft of re-issues and translations on the way it seems.
What did you make of the first book? Very interesting life these academics lead!

I just don't know what to say about this book other than i loved it. It's difficult to discuss, the same way a David Lynch film is difficult to discuss. It's just so dense. I even find it hard to explain the plot to people. I finished it last night. The last book, the part about Archimboldi, is absolutely epic and inspiring and... i don't know. Countless other adjectives apply. The part about the murders can be quite grueling and relentless, as is intended i'd imagine, but the last book is a breath of fresh air. Things come together to some extent at the end but don't expect any definitive answers to any of the questions you might have. I don't think Bolano believed definitive answers exist.

Very good review of the book can be found here.

zesman

Read Distant Star by Bolano and found it to be highly unusual but excellent. Have 2666 at home and will get stuck into it soon

Tyrekicker

IMHO 2666 is the book of the decade.

Damian Duffy

Have recently just finished 2666 and I was stunned, I can't describe why I enjoyed it so much....it's just a brilliant book. Going to purchase The Savage Detectives in the next couple of days. I've heard it's not as good as 2666 but that's not necessarily a bad thing! Which do people think is the better one? Anybody read Amulet?

mackthefinger

2040 wrote: »

I just don't know what to say about this book other than i loved it. It's difficult to discuss, the same way a David Lynch film is difficult to discuss. It's just so dense. I even find it hard to explain the plot to people. I finished it last night. The last book, the part about Archimboldi, is absolutely epic and inspiring and... i don't know. Countless other adjectives apply. The part about the murders can be quite grueling and relentless, as is intended i'd imagine, but the last book is a breath of fresh air. Things come together to some extent at the end but don't expect any definitive answers to any of the questions you might have. I don't think Bolano believed definitive answers exist.

Very good review of the book can be found here.

+1.

When someone asks me what this book is about, I find it hard to give them an answer. Its incredibly dark and dense, with some incredible passages of writing....I always felt that I never quite got to grips with it, that something was always eluding me. I intend to read it again, as there were so many ideas and themes.

randomguy

I've just started 2666, and was really looking forward to it, but after reading a Haruki Murakami reference above I am now wondering if it is going to be worth the effort. First 30 pages read - so far it's pretty smart.

Long books I like: Infinite Jest, Middlesex, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Klay, The Yiddish Policeman's Union, The Corrections, Cryptonomicon, The Baroque Trilogy, Midnight's Children, 100 Yrs of Solitude. I'm also a big Borges fan.

Long Books that I thought were mediocre and meaningless and a waste of my time but that I finished anyway in the (eventually-unsatisfied) hope that they'd have a point at the end: The Wind-Up Bird Chronicles.

Long Books I didn't stick with for long enough which of the 2 categories they fall into: The Unconsoled.

So, do you think I'll like 2666? Or should I just give up now?

2040

randomguy wrote: »

I've just started 2666, and was really looking forward to it, but after reading a Haruki Murakami reference above I am now wondering if it is going to be worth the effort. First 30 pages read - so far it's pretty smart.

Long books I like: Infinite Jest, Middlesex, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Klay, The Yiddish Policeman's Union, The Corrections, Cryptonomicon, The Baroque Trilogy, Midnight's Children, 100 Yrs of Solitude. I'm also a big Borges fan.

Long Books that I thought were mediocre and meaningless and a waste of my time but that I finished anyway in the (eventually-unsatisfied) hope that they'd have a point at the end: The Wind-Up Bird Chronicles.

Long Books I didn't stick with for long enough which of the 2 categories they fall into: The Unconsoled.

So, do you think I'll like 2666? Or should I just give up now?

That's a hard call really. I've read The Wind Up Bird Chronicle and it is similar in some respects. Is there a point to 2666? Yeah, sort of, but really it's about the journey rather than the destination.

I've never read any Borges but apparently Bolano was heavily influenced by him.

The work of Jorge Luis Borges made an indelible mark on Bolaño. When speaking of the books that marked his life, Bolaño referred simply to “the complete works of Borges.”

http://mhpbooks.com/mobylives/?p=10594

He's been widely compared to Borges too.

I'd say you should read it. I've found myself, rather pretentiously, referring to it as a modern latin american Ulysses. It really is an important book i think.

One last thing: if you do continue reading it, don't let the part about the murders put you off. It's relentless and visceral but it contrasts sharply with the next part and i think that was the intended function of it.

Read it.

medici

2040 wrote: »

One last thing: if you do continue reading it, don't let the part about the murders put you off. It's relentless and visceral but it contrasts sharply with the next part and i think that was the intended function of it.

I certainly hope so! I'm finding the murders part to be a really hard slog to be honest but had the hope/suspicion that this would lead to something completely different in the following chapter.

Received the Savage Detectives as a gift for Christmas and really looking forward to getting stuck into it after I finish 2666.

DáireM

I'm finishing up 2666 at the minute and read The Savage Detectives about a year ago.

I've found 2666 much better than The Savage Detectives, although they're both incredible. The midsection of The Savage Detectives is really dense and tough but the first and third sections are really fluid and enjoyable to read.

His views come across moreso in his rambling descriptions than the plots and characters. The soliloquies the insane characters give in these 2 books are amazing and I usually reread them 2 or 3 times before moving on in the story.

I think he's class personally but can see why people wouldn't like his work for sure.

buck65

Finished the book this morning ( I took a few months break between section 2 and 3). Liked the last book about Archimboldi alot. Great war stories and the Baroness was quite a character as well. Hard to say in the immediate aftermath what I thought about the book. I did enjoy reading it and always looked forward to picking it up.
The section about the Santa Teresa murders was tough going, at times the endless descriptions numbed me but there was enough going on in the backround to keep it interesting.
Could well be a modern classic, I feel the effect has to percolate within me yet though. Bolano is a superb writer, very easy on the eye (?).