Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

A long and epic journey, that roams over decades and all over the globe. Bolaño tells the story of two poets who hail from Mexico in the mid 1970s, one Chilean and one Mexican, who disappear from the mainstream after a particular domestic episode involving a dangerous pimp and his woman. The duo, Lupe the prostitute and a young poet escape Alberto the pimp, heading into the Mexican desert of Sonora in search of the elusive 1920's Mexican poetess, Cesárea Tinajero -- the founder of poetry's visceral realist movement.

That's the crux of the novel. But the way it unfolds is the real heart of the book. The first and third final parts are narrated by aspiring 17-year-old Chilean poet Juan Garcia Madero, who gets involved with poets Ulises Lima and Arturo Belano and others in the movement. The middle portion is...long. With sections narrated by a dizzying number of friends, lovers and acquaintances (over 40!) from 1976 - 1996, each shares their story of their relationship to Ulises and Arturo. It's a twisty, turn-y account that is unique in every way.

While I learned the fate of many in the story, there was one character who remained elusive over that twenty-year period. The book lost one star for me over that.

But for a really satisfying read, I recommend this novel, read for Week 12: a book about reading, books or an author/writer.