The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolano. Summary of the book.

by

The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolano

The Savage Detectives, written by Chilean-born author Roberto Bolaño in 1998, is a novel that follows two young Mexican poets as they travel throughout Latin America in search of a mysterious poet-sage named Cesárea Tinajero. The novel is divided into two parts: “The Savage Detectives” and “The Sonora Desert.”

Plot Summary

The novel begins with a group of young poets in Mexico City known as the “visceral realists.” Led by the charismatic figure of Ulises Lima, the group is composed of teenagers who are passionate about writing and literature. At the beginning of the novel, we meet the two main characters: Arturo Belano and Ulises Lima. Belano and Lima set out on a journey to find the missing poet-sage Cesárea Tinajero. Along the way, they meet a variety of characters, including a mysterious woman named Auxilio Lacouture, who is the subject of Belano’s obsession and the object of Lima’s desire. As they travel throughout Latin America, they encounter a variety of bizarre and colorful characters and experiences, including a group of Chilean revolutionaries, a mysterious cult in the Sonora Desert, and a Mexican drug cartel.

The novel is an exploration of the search for meaning in life, and the ways in which poetry and literature can shape our identities and our understanding of the world. The novel is also a meditation on love, loss, and friendship, as Belano and Lima’s journey brings them closer together and helps them to come to terms with their own troubled pasts.

Interesting Facts

1. The novel was inspired by Bolaño’s own life and travels. Bolaño was a voracious reader and traveler, and his own journey through Latin America was a major source of inspiration for the novel.

2. The novel was translated into English in 2007. The English translation of The Savage Detectives was done by Natasha Wimmer and released in 2007. It has since become a classic of Latin American literature, and has been translated into more than 20 languages.

3. The novel was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2008. The Savage Detectives was shortlisted for the 2008 Man Booker Prize for Fiction, making it the first Latin American novel to be nominated for the award.

FAQs

  • Who wrote The Savage Detectives? The Savage Detectives was written by Chilean-born author Roberto Bolaño in 1998.
  • When was the novel translated into English? The English translation of The Savage Detectives was done by Natasha Wimmer and released in 2007.
  • What is the novel about? The novel follows two young Mexican poets as they travel throughout Latin America in search of a mysterious poet-sage named Cesárea Tinajero. It is an exploration of the search for meaning in life, and the ways in which poetry and literature can shape our identities and our understanding of the world.
  • Was the novel shortlisted for any awards? The Savage Detectives was shortlisted for the 2008 Man Booker Prize for Fiction, making it the first Latin American novel to be nominated for the award.

Related books:

  1. New Latin Grammar by Charles E. Bennett. Summary of the book.
  2. Helps to Latin Translation at Sight by Edmund Luce. Summary of the book.
  3. Latin for Beginners by Benjamin L. D’Ooge. Summary of the book.
  4. Cop Hater by Ed McBain. Summary of the book.
  5. Minute Mysteries [Detectograms] by H. A. Ripley. Summary of the book.
  6. Democracy in America — Volume 1 by Alexis de Tocqueville. Summary of the book.
  7. The Aeneid of Virgil by Virgil. Summary of the book.
  8. 1st to Die by James Patterson (2005). Summary of the book.
  9. Darkmans by Nicola Barker. Summary of the book.
  10. The History of Ancient America, Anterior to the Time of Columbus by George Jones. Summary of the book.
  11. Waterland by Graham Swift. Summary of the book.
  12. Democracy in America — Volume 2 by Alexis de Tocqueville. Summary of the book.
  13. Modern Job Search: Insider Knowledge and Strategies that Work by Kurt Schmidt. Summary of the book.
  14. Master Georgie by Beryl Bainbridge. Summary of the book.
  15. Earthly Powers by Anthony Burgess. Summary of the book.
  16. True History of the Ned Kelly Gang by Peter Carey. Summary of the book.
  17. The Valley of Fear by Arthur Conan Doyle. Summary of the book.
  18. Up from Slavery: An Autobiography by Booker T. Washington. Summary of the book.
  19. Aeneidos by Virgil. Summary of the book.
  20. The Elite by Kiera Cass (2013). Summary of the book.
  21. The Danish History, Books I-IX by Grammaticus Saxo. Summary of the book.
  22. My Search for Warren Harding by Robert Plunkett. Summary of the book.
  23. The Virgin in the Garden by AS Byatt. Summary of the book.
  24. The Bone Collector by Jeffery Deaver (1997). Summary of the book.
  25. Bones and Silence by Reginald Hill. Summary of the book.
  26. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett (2001). Summary of the book.
  27. The Wapshot Chronicle by John Cheever. Summary of the book.
  28. The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga (2008). Summary of the book.
  29. The Alienist by Caleb Carr (1994). Summary of the book.
  30. The History of Rome, Books 01 to 08 by Livy. Summary of the book.
  31. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (2008). Summary of the book.
  32. Doctrina Christiana. Summary of the book.
  33. American Gods by Neil Gaiman (2001). Summary of the book.
  34. Deliverance by James Dickey. Summary of the book.
  35. This Sporting Life by David Storey. Summary of the book.
  36. Day by AL Kennedy. Summary of the book.
  37. The Selection by Kiera Cass (2012). Summary of the book.
  38. The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje. Summary of the book.
  39. The Butcher Boy by Patrick McCabe. Summary of the book.
  40. Nights at the Circus by Angela Carter. Summary of the book.
  41. The One by Kiera Cass (2014). Summary of the book.
  42. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Summary of the book.
  43. The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson. Summary of the book.
  44. Illywhacker by Peter Carey. Summary of the book.
  45. The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas by Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis. Summary of the book.
  46. A Month in the Country by JL Carr. Summary of the book.
  47. Being Dead by Jim Crace. Summary of the book.
  48. The Painter of Signs by RK Narayan. Summary of the book.
  49. Anglo-Saxon Attitudes by Angus Wilson. Summary of the book.
  50. Chosen by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast (2008). Summary of the book.

Leave a Comment