Brazilian authors seem to get shorter shrift in Latin American discussions, so I'll throw in my dois centavos:

The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas (Portuguese: Memorias Posthumas de Braz Cubas, modern spelling Memórias Póstumas de Brás Cubas), often subtitled as the Epitaph of a Small Winner, is a novel by the Brazilian writer Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis.

I can't disagree with Terry on this one. Machado de Assis is a great author who you will love, especially if you like playful writers like Jorge Luis Borges and Laurence Sterne.

Have you guys heard of the book Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo? Gabriel Garcia Marquez highly commended it and Jorge Luis Borges called it one of the best novels in literature. I think it ought to be added in the groups bookshelf as well :D

You can't mention Pedro Páramo without me chiming in. This is my all-time favorite novel from Spanish America. I have to admit, however, that it is much better in the original Spanish than in translation. The key to remember with this novel is that it is more about tone and texture (i.e. the experience of the read, which includes the confusion of fragmented voices and chronology) than about plot. And yes, García Márquez has enthusiastically admitted an important debt to Rulfo's text and claims (although remember his tendency toward hyperbole) to have committed the entire novel to memory. Enjoy!

Hi everyone,

Indeed, Juan Rulfo is a superd writer. It's such a pity that he only wrote 2 novels....Both are amazing.

I wonder why nobody added Alejo Carpentier? Has anyone heard from him, and dont you think he should be added to the bookshelf?

Regarding Juan Rulfo. Although it is commonly suggested (even by college professors) that Rulfo wrote only two books (the novel "Pedro Páramo" and the collection of stories "El Llano en llamas"), the truth is different. Rulfo wrote and published a second (short) novel entitled "El gallo de oro" and has published (some posthumously) a number of books of photography. Indeed, if you are unfamiliar with Rulfo's photographic production I encourage you to explore. Great stuff.

Oh, and you're right on about Carpentier. One of my favorites by him is "El arpa y la sombra", an interesting "New Historical" novel about Christopher Columbus.

ok, it's great to hear Rulfo has a third novel!!! This makes my day. I recently read the collected works of Rulfo, but it was an edition of somewhere in the eighties. this might explain why the cover only mentioned two of them.

about Carpentier. I've only read 'The Kingdom of This World: A Novel' and it was great. I have 'Lost Steps' on my nighttable and one of these days I'll probably start with it. should be good too.

Or, more correctly, Rulfo has a third published book of fiction: 2 novels and 1 collection of stories. Read on!

Jose Arguedes -" Los Rios Profundos" and many short stories. Another Peruvian I love is Ciro Alegria. Let us not ignore Angeles Mastretta, my favorite contemporary Mexican novelist. I also couldn't agree more about including Juan Rulfo.