The Spirit of Science Fiction: A Novel
From a master of contemporary fiction, a tale of bohemian youth on the make in Mexico City
Two young poets, Jan and Remo, find themselves adrift in Mexico City. Obsessed with poetry, and, above all, with science fiction, they are eager to forge a life in the literary world--or sacrifice themselves to it. Roberto Bolaño's The Spirit of Science Fiction is a story of youth hungry for revolution, notoriety, and sexual adventure, as they work to construct a reality out of the fragments of their dreams.
But as close as these friends are, the city tugs them in opposite directions. Jan withdraws from the world, shutting himself in their shared rooftop apartment where he feverishly composes fan letters to the stars of science fiction and dreams of cosmonauts and Nazis. Meanwhile, Remo runs headfirst into the future, spending his days and nights with a circle of wild young writers, seeking pleasure in the city's labyrinthine streets, rundown cafés, and murky bathhouses.
This kaleidoscopic work of strange and tender beauty is a fitting introduction for readers uninitiated into the thrills of Roberto Bolaño's fiction, and an indispensable addition to an ecstatic and transgressive body of work.
Two young poets, Jan and Remo, find themselves adrift in Mexico City. Obsessed with poetry, and, above all, with science fiction, they are eager to forge a life in the literary world--or sacrifice themselves to it. Roberto Bolaño's The Spirit of Science Fiction is a story of youth hungry for revolution, notoriety, and sexual adventure, as they work to construct a reality out of the fragments of their dreams.
But as close as these friends are, the city tugs them in opposite directions. Jan withdraws from the world, shutting himself in their shared rooftop apartment where he feverishly composes fan letters to the stars of science fiction and dreams of cosmonauts and Nazis. Meanwhile, Remo runs headfirst into the future, spending his days and nights with a circle of wild young writers, seeking pleasure in the city's labyrinthine streets, rundown cafés, and murky bathhouses.
This kaleidoscopic work of strange and tender beauty is a fitting introduction for readers uninitiated into the thrills of Roberto Bolaño's fiction, and an indispensable addition to an ecstatic and transgressive body of work.
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Community Reviews
lust, passion, desire - all essential tenants of the coming of age story. also in the bildungsroman, transformations often begin through the lens of the outsider seeking access and understanding within.
in roberto bolaño’s ‘the spirit of science fiction’, two promiscuous chilean poets, lost but never incurious, seek to find their place among obscure literary circles. odd expeditions through the labyrinths of mexico city in search of underground magazines, and the poets that author them, jumpstarts their journey.
and on one late night - like any other - filled with poetry readings, bottles of vodka or gin, and countless nescafes, one of the teenagers (remo) reflects, “… i fled to the balcony… i was happy… even if every light went out and all that was left was me and the glow of my cigarette suspended on this wonderful balcony, this particular beauty of terrible fleeting calm wouldn’t melt away”.
how do you name the carefree sensation - reality suspended, love imminent - incubating with the apparition of ‘mexico mágico’ before you? perhaps it’s the summit, once finally arrived.
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