Nocturno de Chile (Narrativas Hispanicas, 293) (Spanish Edition)
Born in 1953 and a resident of Spain since 1977, Chilean author  Bolano didn't publish his first work of fiction until he was 43,  but he's certainly made up for lost time. In the last five years  he's published seven books, the last of which, Llamadas  telefonicas (Telephone Calls, Anagrama, 1997), solidified his  reputation as one of Latin America's premier postmodernist  writers. In this his latest novel, Bolano presents the life of  Sebasti n Urrutia Lacroix, a Chilean priest and minor poet who,  under the pseudonym H. Ibacache, doubles as one the country's  most important literary critics. "Now I'm dying," Sebasti n  declares in the book's first line, "but I still have a lot to  say... There are some things that must be cleared up." Thus  begins a hallucinatory rant in which Sebasti n recounts his  adventures as part of Santiago's literary scene and attempts to  justify his flirtations with the darker side of Chilean  politics. (After all, this is the era of Pinochet, when, in  Bolano's view, even society women can hide horrors in their  basements.) A classic use of the unreliable narrator and a  powerful allegory about the deceptions of political life,  Bolano's novel is another success. Strongly recommended for both  libraries and bookstores. Marcela Vald?s, "Criticas"Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.