Fernando Vallejo’s Followers (348)

Add New
Videos

1 comment

Fernando Vallejo

Born

in Medellin, Colombia

October 24, 1942

Twitter

Fer_Vallejo

Genre

Literature & Fiction, Nonfiction, Biography

Influences

Mariano José de Larra, Azorín, Manuel Mujica Láinez ...more

edit data

Fernando Vallejo Rendón (born 1942 in Medellín, Colombia) is a novelist, filmmaker and essayist, born in Colombia. He obtained Mexican nationality in 2007.

Vallejo was born and raised in Medellín, though he left his hometown early in life. He started studies in Philosophy at the National University of Colombia in Bogotá, but after one year he abandoned the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters. Soon after he began new studies on biology at the Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, which he finished. Then he spent one year in Italy at the film academy Cinecittá, where he obtained basic notions on cinema.

Vallejo then returned to Colombia with the project of filmmaking. Yet after difficulties with the Colombian Government in producing and, after he prod Fernando Vallejo Rendón (born 1942 in Medellín, Colombia) is a novelist, filmmaker and essayist, born in Colombia. He obtained Mexican nationality in 2007.

Vallejo was born and raised in Medellín, though he left his hometown early in life. He started studies in Philosophy at the National University of Colombia in Bogotá, but after one year he abandoned the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters. Soon after he began new studies on biology at the Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, which he finished. Then he spent one year in Italy at the film academy Cinecittá, where he obtained basic notions on cinema.

Vallejo then returned to Colombia with the project of filmmaking. Yet after difficulties with the Colombian Government in producing and, after he produced it, in presenting his first film (it was censored), he decided to leave his country.[citation needed]

In Mexico he produced and distributed three films about the violence in Colombia. He also wrote an award-winning children's theater script, "El reino misterioso o Tomás y las abejas." He has been living in Mexico since 1971, where he not only produced his cinematographic pieces, but also the whole of his literary work. Despite time spent in other locales, mainly Europe and the United States, most of his novels take place in Colombia. Some of his themes are grammar, biology, philosophy, physics, violence, pederasty, adolescence, drugs, death and politics, mostly related to places such as Antioquia and Medellín; yet his main theme is his life. His books are written in first person, in an autobiographical style.

His best-known novel, La virgen de los sicarios, has been translated into English as Our Lady of the Assassins. It deals with his fictionalized return to Medellín, and his relationships with two teenagers caught in the local cycle of violence. The autobiographical/fiction La virgen de los sicarios was made into a full feature film in 2000 and released in the United States as Our Lady of the Assassins.

In 2003, Colombian filmmaker Luis Ospina made a feature-length documentary about him: "La desazón suprema: retrato incesante de Fernando Vallejo ("The Supreme Uneasiness: Incessant Portrait of Fernando Vallejo").

In April 2007, Vallejo obtained Mexican citizenship and published a letter in which he publicly renounced his Colombian nationality. The letter presents the reasons for his decision by mentioning several incidents during his career, among them the recent reelection of President Uribe, that eventually led him to this decision.[1] ...more

Combine Editions
Fernando Vallejo’s books

Average rating: 3.74 · 11,215 ratings · 1,168 reviews · 34 distinct works • Similar authors

	La virgen de los sicarios 3.71 avg rating — 4,575 ratings — published 1994 — 58 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
	El desbarrancadero 3.85 avg rating — 1,907 ratings — published 2002 — 30 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
	La puta de Babilonia 3.83 avg rating — 1,268 ratings — published 2005 — 24 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
	Los días azules 4.15 avg rating — 588 ratings — published 2004 — 16 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
	Memorias de un hijueputa 3.14 avg rating — 575 ratings — published 2019 — 6 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
	Mi hermano el alcalde 3.71 avg rating — 300 ratings — published 2007 — 12 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
	El don de la vida 3.60 avg rating — 246 ratings — published 2010 — 7 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
	Casablanca la bella 3.64 avg rating — 200 ratings — published 2011 — 7 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
	La Rambla paralela 3.69 avg rating — 185 ratings — published 2000 — 10 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
	El fuego secreto 3.77 avg rating — 176 ratings — published 1986 — 12 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 Fernando Vallejo…

Series by Fernando Vallejo

El río del tiempo (5 books)
by

Fernando Vallejo

3.96 avg rating — 1,086 ratings

Quotes by Fernando Vallejo (?)

“…cuando la humanidad se sienta en sus culos ante un televisor a ver veintidós adultos infantiles dándole patadas a un balón no hay esperanzas…”
― Fernando Vallejo, La virgen de los sicarios

tags: esperanza, fútbol, humanidad, televisor

23 likes

“A Dios, como al doctor Frankenstein su monstruo, el hombre se le fue de la smanos.”
― Fernando Vallejo, La virgen de los sicarios

tags: dios, hombre, monstruo

16 likes

“…con eso de que aquí, en este país de leyes y constituciones, democrático, no es culpable nadie hasta que no lo condenen, y no lo condenan si no lo juzgan, y no lo juzgan si no lo agarran, y si lo agarran lo sueltan…”
― Fernando Vallejo

tags: condena, culpable, democracia, justicia, ley

13 likes

See all Fernando Vallejo's quotes »

Polls

What will be our September 2025 Open Pick?

Remember, if you vote for a book and it wins, you are implicitly promising to read the book and participate in the discussion.

The poll will be up through Monday, August 25th.

The Morning Star by Karl Ove Knausgård

14 votes, 66.7%

The Abyss by Fernando Vallejo

7 votes, 33.3%

21 total votes

4 comments

More...

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Around the World: Philly Beth's 2013 Around the World	15	66	Mar 18, 2013 07:43AM
The Seasonal Read...: 10.5 - Cinco de Mayo	55	182	May 10, 2015 03:09PM
Around the World ...: Diane - Trekker 2013	176	283	Dec 23, 2015 07:54AM
The Perks Of Bein...: A-Z of Authors!	544	791	Apr 03, 2016 09:56PM
Reading 1001: Vote for June 2018 BOTM	15	39	Apr 23, 2018 03:05AM
Reading 1001: January/February 2019, Globetrotter Perspective	42	37	Feb 01, 2019 03:00AM
Around the World ...: Diane - Circumnavigator	74	443	Jun 08, 2019 08:39AM
Around the World ...: Diane's ATW1001 Books	631	859	Oct 27, 2019 11:29AM
Reading 1001: Vote for October 2020 BOTM CLOSED	27	53	Sep 21, 2020 06:32PM

More…

Is this you? Let us know. If not, help out and invite Fernando to Goodreads.