2666 by Roberto Bolaño
The novel is a sprawling, ambitious work that spans continents and time periods, centering around an elusive, reclusive German author. It intertwines five different narratives: a group of European academics searching for the author, a professor in Mexico dealing with his own personal crises, a New York reporter sent to cover a boxing match in Mexico, an African-American journalist in Detroit, and the horrifying and unsolved murders of hundreds of women in a Mexican border town. The narratives are linked by themes of violence, mystery, and the search for meaning in a chaotic world.
The 232nd greatest book of all time
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Total Points: 1361
This book was first published in 2004
39 Lists
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- score: 16 -- The 10 Best Books Through Time - Yearly Book Award (Weight: 79)
- score: 14 -- Books of the Decade - 2009 (Weight: 48)
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- score: 1 -- Best Fiction Books of the 21st Century (So Far) - 2025 (Weight: 1)
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- score: 1 -- National Book Critics Circle Award - Fiction - Yearly Book Award (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- PEN Translation Prize - Yearly Book Award (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- The 21 Books From the 21st Century Every Man Should Read - 2015 (Weight: 1)
- score: 1 -- Our Users' Honorable Mention Favorite Books of All Time - 2024 (Weight: 1)
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- score: 1 -- A Century of Reading - 2018 (Weight: 1)
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