By now, we all know that the fantastic Mario Vargas Llosa is the Nobel Laureate in Literature for 2010. I freely admit that I have only read one of his novels,In Praise of the Stepmother, which I really enjoyed. I don’t know why I haven’t read any of his other novels. But that’s the thing with the Nobel Prize in Literature–sometimes it confirms your admiration of well-known writers, sometimes it encourages you to try a new writer, sometimes it even helps you rediscover a writer whose work you already admired.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with Vargas Llosa’s work, it’s high time you go to your nearest bookstore, and discover his genius. Here is a list of his novels:
- 1959 – Los jefes (The Cubs and Other Stories, 1979)
- 1963 – La ciudad y los perros (The Time of the Hero, 1966)
- 1966 – La casa verde (The Green House, 1968)
- 1969 – Conversación en la catedral (Conversation in the Cathedral, 1975)
- 1973 – Pantaleón y las visitadoras (Captain Pantoja and the Special Service, 1978)
- 1977 – La tía Julia y el escribidor (Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter, 1982)
- 1981 – La guerra del fin del mundo (The War of the End of the World, 1984)
- 1984 – Historia de Mayta (The Real Life of Alejandro Mayta, 1985)
- 1986 – ¿Quién mató a Palomino Molero? (Who Killed Palomino Molero?, 1987)
- 1987 – El hablador (The Storyteller, 1989)
- 1988 – Elogio de la madrastra (In Praise of the Stepmother, 1990)
- 1993 – Lituma en los Andes (Death in the Andes, 1996)
- 1997 – Los cuadernos de don Rigoberto (Notebooks of Don Rigoberto, 1998)
- 2000 – La fiesta del chivo (The Feast of the Goat, 2002)
- 2003 – El paraíso en la otra esquina (The Way to Paradise, 2003)
- 2006 – Travesuras de la niña mala (The Bad Girl, 2007)
- 2010 – El sueño del celta
By the way, I borrowed that list from Wikipedia. 🙂 All of the books listed have been translated to English. His latest novel, El sueño del celta, is scheduled for English language release in 2012.
I recently read “The Storyteller” and thought it compelling. I must have read other writings of his over the years, for his name is so familiar. Good call by the Academy.
I can’t decide which book of Mario Vargas Llosa to read first. Help me please by taking part in my poll: http://andreasmoser.wordpress.com/2010/10/08/mario-vargas-llosa-poll/
Thanks 🙂