Latin America
Last updated: March 23, 2025
We have a variety of interviews discussing books on Latin America. James Dunkerley chooses his best books on Latin American history, Patricio Navia chooses his best books on Latin American politics, and William LeoGrande his best books on US relations with Latin America. John King chooses his selection of the best Latin American novels. Oscar Guardiola-Rivera chooses his best books on the rise of Latin America.
On individual countries:
Regina Marchi chooses her best books on the Latin American celebrations of the Day of the Dead.
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1
Not a River: A Novel
by Selva Almada, translated by Annie McDermott -
2
Fever Dream: A Novel
by Samanta Schweblin, translated by Megan McDowell -
3
Eartheater: A Novel
by Dolores Reyes, translated by Julia Sanches -
4
The Adventures of China Iron
by Gabriela Cabezón Cámara, translated by Fiona Mackintosh and Iona Macintyre -
5
Confession
by Martín Kohan, translated by Daniel Hahn
Five of the Best 21st-Century Argentinian Novels, recommended by Claudia Piñeiro
Five of the Best 21st-Century Argentinian Novels, recommended by Claudia Piñeiro
You may be familiar with the work of the great Argentinian authors Jorge Luis Borges and Julio Cortázar, but how about the country’s crop of contemporary writers? We asked Claudia Piñeiro, author of many bestselling and critically acclaimed books, to introduce us to five unmissable 21st-century Argentinian novels.
The best books on Chile, recommended by Natascha Scott-Stokes
Chile is a country of extremes says travel writer and translator Natascha Scott-Stokes, who has lived there for nearly two decades. She chooses five books that give a good sense of the country, from a novel by one of Chile’s great writers, to the biography of the folk singer who was brutally murdered after the 1973 military coup.
The Best Colombian Novels, recommended by Pilar Quintana
Colombian novels shot to international prominence after the publication of One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez, which told the story of his small, Colombian hometown by mixing in fantastical elements. The novel spoke to readers around the globe and García Márquez would go on to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. Here, contemporary Colombian novelist Pilar Quintana introduces us to the works of this ‘genius’ as well as some of the other great novels of Colombian literature.
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1
The Skeleton at the Feast
by Elizabeth Carmichael and Chloë Sayer -
2
The Days of the Dead
by John Greenleigh and Rosalind Beimler -
3
Día de los Muertos: A Cultural Legacy, Past, Present & Future
Curated by Linda Vallejo and Betty Brown -
4
On the Path of Marigolds: Living Traditions of Mexico's Day of the Dead
by Ann Murdy -
5
El Corazon de la Muerte
by Oakland Museum of California
The best books on The Day of The Dead, recommended by Regina Marchi
The best books on The Day of The Dead, recommended by Regina Marchi
As long as they live in our memories, family members and loved ones who have died remain with us. That’s what is celebrated on the Day of the Dead, an indigenous Latin American tradition that survived both Catholic missionaries and the modernizing state to flourish in recent years, featuring in more than one Hollywood blockbuster. Regina Marchi, a professor at Rutgers University and author of Day of the Dead in the USA, talks us through the origins, evolution and contemporary celebrations of the Day of the Dead.
The best books on Latin American Politics, recommended by Patricio Navia
Political scientist Patricio Navia discusses how the identity of Latin America is inextricably bound up with its colonial history, why Latin American voters elect left-wing leaders, and how social inclusion is necessary for Latin America to realise its full potential
The Best Latin American Novels, recommended by John King
From magical realism to political upheaval, John King, Professor Emeritus at Warwick University, recommends five essential works of Latin American fiction – and reveals what Jorge Luis Borges was like in person.
The best books on U.S. relations with Latin America, recommended by William LeoGrande
U.S. government adviser and Dean of the American University School of Public Affairs leads a book-bound tour that takes us from the Bacardi dynasty in Cuba to American military interventions in Central America
The best books on Latin American History, recommended by James Dunkerley
Professor James Dunkerley at Queen Mary’s, University of London, says that ‘Latin America’ is a term that only dates from the 1830s. He chooses five books that illuminate the cultural and political history of the continent.
The best books on Brazil, recommended by Larry Rohter
The former Rio de Janeiro bureau chief for the New York Times, Larry Rohter, discusses five books that explore the strain of tragedy lurking just beneath Brazil’s ‘happy’ image.
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1
The Secret History of Costaguana
by Juan Gabriel Vásquez -
2
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
by Junot Díaz -
3
The Many-Headed Hydra
by Marcus Rediker and Paul Linebaugh -
4
Of Divine Warning
by Jane Anna and Lewis R Gordon -
5
Time for a Visible Hand
by Stephany Griffiths-Jones, Jose Antonio Ocampo & Joseph Stiglitz
The best books on The Rise of Latin America, recommended by Oscar Guardiola-Rivera
The best books on The Rise of Latin America, recommended by Oscar Guardiola-Rivera
The author and academic says the global financial meltdown has shattered the apparently sophisticated, but in fact conceptually hollow, foundations upon which “self-regulated” markets were built