Bolano's 2666

[John Pendergast]

All,

I'm not sure if this has been reported yet, but the English translation 
of Roberto Bolano's /2666 /is due out soon. Given a shadowy network of 
former students who now work at a local bookstore, I have been reading 
an advance copy of it, and it is noteworthy that the central character 
(in the first third of the novel, at least) is a reclusive (or, at 
least, non-publicity seeking) novelist and his obsessive and always 
prying critical followers. It is a great read, and perhaps there is a 
European/Latin model other than Pynchon who inspired Bolano, but as I 
read it, I can't help but wonder.

John Pendergast