Chile flag Historical fiction books from Chile

Recommended historical fiction books (8)
Travel the world without leaving your chair. If you are into historical fiction here are some historical fiction books from Chile for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge.

1.

By Night in Chile by Roberto Bolaño EN

Rating: 4 (1 vote)
Description:
Father Sebastián Urrutia Lacroix, a Chilean priest, believes he is dying. During the course of a single night of feverish delirium, he relives some of the crucial events of his life, and encounters and 'converses' with prominent cultural and political figures, including General Augusto Pinochet.

2.

How to Order the Universe by María José Ferrada EN

Rating: 4 (2 votes)
Description:
A San Francisco Chronicle and Southwest Review Best Book of the Year and A World Literature Today Notable Translation of the Year “A dreamscape of a book. I adored this compelling, wise, and utterly unique coming-of-age tale.” —Tara Conklin For seven-year-old M, the world is guided by a firm set of principles, based on her father D’s life as a traveling salesman. Enchanted by her father’s trade, M convinces him to take her along on his routes, selling hardware supplies against the backdrop of Pinochet-era Chile. As father and daughter trek from town to town in their old Renault, M’s memories a... continue


4.

My Tender Matador by Pedro Lemebel EN

Rating: 5 (2 votes)
Description:
A funny and compassionate play about a middle-aged "inventor" who has spent his years chasing one illusion after another while first his wife and then his teenage daughter have had to work to support him.

5.

Space Invaders : A Novel by Nona Fernández EN

0 Ratings
Description:
A dreamlike evocation of a generation that grew up in the shadow of a dictatorship in 1980s Chile Space Invaders is the story of a group of childhood friends who, in adulthood, are preoccupied by uneasy memories and visions of their classmate Estrella González Jepsen. In their dreams, they catch glimpses of Estrella’s braids, hear echoes of her voice, and read old letters that eventually, mysteriously, stopped arriving. They recall regimented school assemblies, nationalistic class performances, and a trip to the beach. Soon it becomes clear that Estrella’s father was a ranking government offic... continue

6.

The Days of the Rainbow : A Novel by Antonio Skarmeta EN

Rating: 4 (1 vote)
Description:
A novel based on the true story of how an advertising campaign caused the fall of Chile’s dictator, General Pinochet Nico, the son of a noted Chilean philosophy professor, witnesses his father’s arrest while he is teaching a class. Bettini, the father of Nico’s best friend, is a leftist advertising executive who has been blacklisted and is out of work after having been imprisoned and tortured by Pinochet’s police. This doesn’t stop the ministry of the interior from asking Bettini, who is the best in the business, to come up with a plan for the upcoming referendum designed to say “yes” to Pinoc... continue

7.

There are More Things by Yara Rodrigues Fowler EN

0 Ratings
Description:
Shortlisted for the Goldsmiths Prize & the Orwell Prize for Fiction A Sunday Times Fiction Book of the Year 'a serious accomplishment' Sunday Times 'vivid and expansive' Sophie Mackintosh 'a lyrical celebration' TLS 'a glorious, poetic feat' Bolu Babalola This is a novel about two women - Melissa and Catarina. Catarina is born to a well-known political family in Brazil. Melissa, a South London native, is brought up by her mum and a crew of rebellious grandmothers. In 2016, they meet for the first time. Their story takes us across continents and generations. In it we see sisterhood and queernes... continue

8.

Ways of Going Home by Alejandro Zambra EN

Rating: 5 (1 vote)
Description:
The writer son of a quiet sympathizer with the Pinochet regime reflects on the progress of his novel, in which an unnamed boy from a Chilean suburb witnesses an earthquake and meets an older girl who asks him to spy on her uncle.