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 311th greatest book of all time
- Published
- 2004
- Nationality
- Chilean
- Length
- Long
- Pages
- 900-1100
- Words
- 325,000
- Original Language
- Spanish
- Alternate Titles
- None
If you're interested in seeing the ranking details on this book go here
This book is on the following 25 lists:
- 1st on The 21 best books of the 21st century (Babelia en EL PAÍS)
- 1st on Truelit's 100 Best Books of the Quarter Century (/r/truelit)
- 4th on 100 Best Novels Written in Spanish in the Past 25 Years (Semana Magazine)
- 4th on A Premature Attempt at the 21st Century Canon (Vulture)
- 4th on The Millions: The Best Fiction of the Millennium (The Millions)
- 6th on 100 Best Books of the 21st Century (NY Times)
- 6th on The Ideal Library (Book)
- 12th on TrueLit's Top 100 Favorite Books (2023) (/r/TrueLit)
- 19th on The 21st Century's 12 Greatest Novels (BBC)
- 39th on In Which These Are the 100 Greatest Novels (ThisRecording.com)
- 64th on Readers Pick Their 100 Best Books of the 21st Century (NY Times)
- 483rd on Our Users' Honorable Mention Favorite Books of All Time (The Greatest Books Users)
- 1,000 Books to Read Before You Die: A Life-Changing List (1,000 Books to Read Before You Die(Book))
- 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (The Book)
- 100 Books, 100 Companions (Zeit Online)
- 21 books for the XXI century (Cultura/s)
- 25 Novels to Understand Our Reality from 2000 to The Present (elDiario.es)
- A Century of Reading (Lithub)
- Books of the Decade (The Guardian)
- National Book Critics Circle Award - Fiction (National Book Critics Circle)
- Potter, Pi, and Pilgrim: What any library of the aughts ought to contain (Honorable mention not from Canada) (The National Post (newspaper))
- The 100 Best Mystery and Thriller Books of All Time (Time)
- The 100 Novels That Have Most Enthralled "Le Monde" Since 1944 (Le Monde)
- The 10 Best Books Through Time (New York Times)
- The Books of Our Time (Der Spiegel)