Rómulo Gallegos International Novel Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 11 (1999) Winner
Roberto Bolaño Ávalos
ロベルト・ボラーニョ・アヴァロス
Roberuto Borānyo Avarosu
Pen Names:
Arturo Belano（Fictional alter ego appearing in several of his works）
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1953-04-28 （Santiago, Chile）
- Died
- 2003-07-15 （Barcelona, Spain） age 50
- Nationality
- Chile
- Languages
- Spanish
- Religion
- Atheism / non-religious
- Residence History
- Viña del Mar, Chile → Quilpué, Chile → Mexico City, Mexico → Blanes, Catalonia, Spain → Barcelona area, Spain
Career
- Occupations
- Writer, Novelist, Poet, Essayist
- Active Years
- 1970-2003
- Influenced By
- Jorge Luis Borges, Julio Cortázar
- Influenced
- Rodrigo Fresán, Enrique Vila-Matas
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Rómulo Gallegos Prize | The Savage Detectives (Los detectives salvajes) | — | Rómulo Gallegos Prize (organizers) | 受賞 |
| 2008 | National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction | 2666 | — | National Book Critics Circle | 受賞（追贈） |
Rómulo Gallegos Prize
1999
Work:
The Savage Detectives (Los detectives salvajes)
Organization:
Rómulo Gallegos Prize (organizers)
Result:
受賞
National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction
2008
Work:
2666
Organization:
National Book Critics Circle
Result:
受賞（追贈）
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
The Savage Detectives (Los detectives salvajes)
1998 Novel (polyphonic, long-form) 544 pagesA multi-voiced novel tracing a generation of poets from the 1970s to the 1990s. Through many narrators it follows the search for the missing poet Cesárea Tinajero and explores friendship, literary obsession and exile.
PoetryYouthTravelFriendshipMyth of literature
Translations
- English (translated by Natasha Wimmer and others)
2666
2004 Novel (five parts) 1100 pagesA vast five-part novel weaving multiple storylines and characters around the unsolved female homicides in the fictional Santa Teresa, depicting the horrors of the 20th century and the moral limits of art and knowledge.
ViolenceCrimeLimits of intellectModern history
Translations
- English (translated by Natasha Wimmer)
By Night in Chile (Nocturno de Chile)
2000 Novella / short novel (deathbed monologue) 144 pagesA deathbed monologue of an Opus Dei priest and failed poet that indicts the complicity of intellectuals with the brutality of Pinochet's regime.
ResponsibilityArt and politicsComplicity
Translations
- English (translated by Chris Andrews and others)
Distant Star (Estrella distante)
1996 Novella / Novel 160 pagesA dark satirical tale set against the Pinochet regime dealing with murder, photography and the moral compromises of artists and perpetrators.
Political violencePhotographyMoral compromise
Translations
- English (translated)
Bibliography
- The Savage Detectives (1998)
- 2666 (2004)
- By Night in Chile (2000)
- Distant Star (1996)
- The Skating Rink (1993)
- The Romantic Dogs (poetry)
Translations of Works
- Numerous English translations (Natasha Wimmer, Chris Andrews, others)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Polyphonic, mosaic narrationPoetic proseFragmentary, essayistic structure
- Recurring Motifs
- Writers and the myth of poetryViolence and deathTravel and exileNazism / shadows of power
Health
-
Liver failure晩年（1998–2003）Long-term health decline culminating in liver failure; he was on a liver-transplant waiting list and died of liver failure in 2003.
Legacy
Bolaño is regarded as one of the most significant Latin American literary voices of his generation. His posthumous reputation grew internationally and he remains a major subject of contemporary literary study.
Academic Societies
- Various academic groups and study circles dedicated to Roberto Bolaño (names vary by country)
Archives
- Archivo Bolaño (collections and archival material related to Bolaño, associated with CCCB and other institutions)
In Popular Culture
- Portraits and stencil graffiti of Bolaño appear in Barcelona street art
Quotes
-
“My only country is my two children and wife.”
Source: Last interview (Mexican edition of Playboy, published 2003) (2003) -
“All literature, in a certain sense, is political.”
Source: Essays / interviews (various)
Trivia
- He is reported to have had dyslexia in childhood.
- Was a founding member of the Infrarealism movement in his youth.
- Worked odd jobs (dishwasher, campground custodian) in Spain while writing.
- Considered himself primarily a poet and turned to fiction later in life.