About

Bolaño's Library

Roberto Bolaño's books are full of other people's books. Characters argue about them, steal them, read them in the bath while the country falls apart. Some of the names are famous, a lot of them aren't, and for years I kept a list of the ones I didn't know.

This site is that list. Each refresh gives you one writer or movement, where they turn up in Bolaño's work, why they might be worth your time, and a book to start with.

Caveats

Some entries are shaky. Bolaño invented writers, renamed real ones, and put words in the mouths of people who never said them. Where I wasn't sure whether a name is real, or where exactly it appears, I've said so in the data rather than guess. If you spot a mistake, tell me.

The links

"Free" links go to Project Gutenberg. The others go to a specific edition on Open Library, which lists places to buy or borrow it. I don't make anything from any of this.

Offline

You can add this site to your phone's home screen and it opens like an app. Entries you've seen are kept for offline use automatically; to keep all of them, including portraits (about 11 MB), press the button.

Who

Made by Jay Mollica. Portraits are from Wikipedia.