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The Spirit of Science Fiction
The Spirit of Science Fiction: A Novel | Roberto Bolaño
1 post | 1 read | 1 to read
From a master of contemporary fiction, a tale of bohemian youth on the make in Mexico City Two young poets, Jan and Remo, find themselves adrift in Mexico City. Obsessed with poetry, and, above all, with science fiction, they are eager to forge a life in the literary world--or sacrifice themselves to it. Roberto Bolaño's The Spirit of Science Fiction is a story of youth hungry for revolution, notoriety, and sexual adventure, as they work to construct a reality out of the fragments of their dreams. But as close as these friends are, the city tugs them in opposite directions. Jan withdraws from the world, shutting himself in their shared rooftop apartment where he feverishly composes fan letters to the stars of science fiction and dreams of cosmonauts and Nazis. Meanwhile, Remo runs headfirst into the future, spending his days and nights with a circle of wild young writers, seeking pleasure in the city's labyrinthine streets, rundown cafés, and murky bathhouses. This kaleidoscopic work of strange and tender beauty is a fitting introduction for readers uninitiated into the thrills of Roberto Bolaño's fiction, and an indispensable addition to an ecstatic and transgressive body of work.
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Bookwomble
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Bailedbailed

#ReadingTheAmericas2023 #Chile 🇨🇱
Well, I tried, though admittedly not very hard, to like this book, but my reading stamina seems to be at a low ebb, as I'm deciding within a score of pages whether I can persevere, which in this case I couldn't.
Despite being about a sci-fi-loving reader with whom I might reasonably be expected to find some connection, I'm getting nothing. Time to move on ðŸ˜ðŸ“š
@BarbaraBB @Librarybelle

Bookwomble This is the second new-to-me Chilean author who's left me cold. I might have to fall back on Isabel Allende. 12mo
BarbaraBB Ah That‘s a pity. Bolaño wrote some pretty good books but I haven‘t read this one. 12mo
Bookwomble @BarbaraBB I haven't read anything else by him. I've read that this was his first novel, which wasn't published until after his death, and some controversy about whether it would have been his wish for it to be in print. Reviews are a bit mixed, but I have no context by which to judge it, just that it wasn't working for me. 12mo
BarbaraBB Well, on to the next 🩵 12mo
Librarybelle That‘s a shame! But, if you‘re not enjoying it, it‘s time to move on…good try! 12mo
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