At the start, I was rather unconvinced by this novella, but the more I read the more engaged I was. I'll have to google all the Chilean writers mentioned because apart from Neruda, I couldn't place them.
The picture of Santiago de Chile in winter with the Andes in the background I found on Wikipedia felt fitting...
#FoodandLit #Chile
@Catsandbooks @Texreader
pickA playful/serious look at Bolaño‘s home country and the legacy of Pinochet. The whole short novel is the deathbed raving of a poetic Catholic priest, and literary critic, who found himself, at one point, teaching Communism to Pinochet (who deposed Communist-supported Allende). It‘s oddly real/surreal except that its most surreal moments are factual. It also has some obscure aspects. So I can‘t say I understood this well, but I enjoyed it.
Started a new book.
One has to be responsible, as I have always said. One has a moral obligation to take responsibility for one‘s actions, and that includes one‘s words and one‘s silences, yes, silences, because silences rise to heaven too, and God hears them, and only God understands and judges them, so one must be very careful with one‘s silences.
pickCompletely wonderful. This narrative moved me so much.... A lyrical swirl of musings and reveries; ambitious, grand in scale, relentlessly striving to express what‘s quite possibly the inexpressible: about life and literature and finding or failing to find meaning.
It felt like I was reading something by a literary giant, and I‘m excited to continue on with this author!
I didn‘t like “The Savage Detectives†but that is not—NOT—gonna stop me from reading more Bolaño.
pickThere is such a quantity of symbolism in this book. I caught some of it; however, those who know more about the history of Chile will definitely catch more.
Went to the used book store today. See any favorites?
panSo, a colleague has been recommending Bolaño to me for a while. I followed the advice of a 2012 New Yorker article and started with a short story (just ok for me) and then move to this novella. I think this author is just not for me. A few intriguing scenes, but this felt like one long run on sentence, if I‘m honest. #MountTBR
Okay y'all this guy is in Europe learning how to preserve old churches and was surprised to find out that pigeon poop is the biggest threat, so the priest at this church is a falconer. And as someone who studied abroad at the Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies in Rome I CAN CONFIRM that pigeon poop is a huge issue and falconry is still the main way to deal with it. They hire falconers to scare pigeons away from Pompeii all the time. 😂🤣
I started listening to this tonight and couldn't hit pause for over 2 hours. Bolaño immediately sucked me into this weird, meandering story told by a dying man, and Rivera is an excellent narrator whose work I've enjoyed before. Can't wait to get back to this one tomorrow! Have y'all read any Roberto Bolaño? #hoopla #audiobook
I stopped reading for a few weeks after reading ~15 books this summer. Getting back into the swing of things with this book which has been sitting on my shelves for almost 4 years! Cheers to my first Bolaño ?
I only have three orange books too! ðŸŠðŸ˜…
Getting my sunshine in while I can. This weekend is Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon! I'll be hosting a twitter chat on Thursday @ 7 PM eastern on @ readathon. I also wrote a warmup post for their site: http://www.24hourreadathon.com/?p=7034 One of the books I'll be reading is By Night In Chile! #readathon #deweys24hourreadathon #24hourreadathon
I am dying now, but i still have many things to say. I used to be at peace with myself. Quiet and at peace. But it all blew up unexpectedly. That wizened youth is to blame. I was at peace...
so-soI don't know how to feel about this book. Some parts were really engaging. Other parts were just meh. Has anyone else read some Bolaño? What do y'all think?
By Night in Chile | 
