On My Bookshelf

Let’s be honest. Who doesn’t have a lot of books waiting to be read on the bookshelf? They are there, staring at you while you scroll down online bookshops to buy new ones.

I have the privilege of living in a house of readers. So I went through all the spots where there are books in my place to find how many South American authors I could find. I included Kindle also.

As a Brazilian, a high quantity of Brazilian writers on my shelves will be the norm. I had to limit myself to a few options to avoid getting lost in Brazilian literature (which is not a bad idea).

The Invisible Memory by João Ubaldo Ribeiro is a book I am eager to read. Also, I would like to read Latin America: Great Homeland by Darcy Ribeiro and For an Afro-Latin American Feminism by Lélia Gonzalez, which will enlighten this journey.

What is there on my bookshelf?

So putting Brazilian authors aside for a moment, what do I have on my bookshelf and Kindle? Seven books from South America, and that’s it. I wasn’t expecting much but from hundreds of books finding only 7 certainly reassured me that this challenge was the right decision.

It would be a flop Bookshelf tour for sure.

To make me less guilty, I read most of them😅.

I noticed that the majority of these books were from Argentinian writers. This made me think, and I also have this feeling, that we have a higher connection with Argentina.

Would it be because of football? Mercosul? Or would it be related to the Latin-American Literature Boom from the 60s 70s (as Argentina and Mexico were the countries with more writers known in that movement)?

Maybe all together. And being aware of this availability of Argentinian writers made me glad as I can find multiple books in public libraries and second-hand bookshops.

Book selection

Although I had few books, in the end, from my bookshelves, I could find awesome options to read:

Colombia

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez

Chile

20 Poems and a Song of Despair by Pablo Neruda

Brazil

The Invisible Memory, by João Ubaldo Ribeiro

For an Afro-Latin American Feminism (in free translation) by Lélia Gonzales

Latin America: Great Homeland (in free translation) by Darcy Ribeiro

Argentina

The Tunnel by Ernesto Sabato

An Impossible Balance, Mempo Giardinelli (re-reading)

It's a great place to start!