Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com

Traverse Chile's diverse literary and geographic landscape with its best contemporary writers. Arranged geographically, these 20 stories -- many of which appear in English for the first time -- guide the reader through Chile's unique regions. Let Ariel Dorfman take you to Santiago with a prodigal son, discovering his own country for the first time; travel to the remote south with Enrique Valdes; and enjoy the charms of Valparaiso with Pablo Neruda, one of Chile's two Nobel Prize winners.

With the return of democracy to Chile, large numbers of Americans and Chilean expatriates are rediscovering the rich cultural allure of Chile, as well as the draw of its unrivaled ecodiversity. Chile is an excellent literary guide for globetrotters and armchair travelers alike -- for those new to Chile as well as those familiar with its charms.

Katherine Silver is a freelance translator, editor, teacher and writer who has lived in Chile frequently and for prolonged periods from 1979 to the present. She has translated the Il Postino by Antonio Skarmeta, as well as the works of Elena Poniatowska, Jose Emilio Pacheco and Martin Adan. She is currently translating Pedro Lemebel's I Tremble Toreador for Grove/Atlantic Press.

Average Customer Rating:

interesting book	Customer Rating:
Since it is short stories you can have it in the car or whatever and pick it up at odd moments. Enjoyed all the stories so far and the cultural differences are of interest while not massively jarring. But then people seem to always be people don't they? Buy and enjoy this if you like character study with interesting culture and geography.

The Baedeker of 20th-century Chilean Literature	Customer Rating:
Blessings on the heads of the Traveler's Literary Companions folks, who figured out a magical formula: travelers like to read, and reading infinitely enhances the experience of a trip. This small, packable volume collects stories by Chilean writers and arranges them geographically from Antofagasta to Punta Arenas, in the process revealing much of Chile's mood, culture, and geography.