Hernán Rivera Letelier facts for kids
Hernán Rivera Letelier is a famous Chilean writer, born on July 11, 1950, in Talca, Chile. He is known for his interesting novels.
When he was a boy, Hernán lived in a saltpeter mining town called Algorta until he was 11. Saltpeter was an important mineral mined in the north of Chile. After the mine closed, he moved to Antofagasta. Sadly, his mother passed away there. His brothers and sisters went to live with their aunts, but Hernán stayed in Antofagasta by himself for a while. To earn money, he sold newspapers.
Later, he worked as a messenger. But he loved adventure! So, he spent three years traveling through Chile, Bolivia, Perú, Ecuador, and Argentina. He returned to Antofagasta in 1973 and started working at a company called Mantos Blancos. When he was 24, he married a 17-year-old girl.
He later moved to another saltpeter town called Pedro de Valdivia. Even though he was older, he went back to school at night to finish his studies. He also earned a license to teach. Today, Hernán Rivera Letelier lives in Antofagasta with his wife and their four children.
He has won important awards for his books. He received the Premio Consejo Nacional de Libro (Chilean National Book Award) twice, in 1994 and 1996. In 2010, his novel El arte de la resurrección won the Premio Alfaguara de Novela in Spain.
Hernán Rivera Letelier started by writing poetry and short stories. But he became most famous for his novels. His books have been translated into many different languages. One of his novels was even made into a movie recently!
He dreams of writing in a special way, mixing the magical style of Juan Rulfo, the wonderful stories of Gabriel García Márquez, the playful ideas of Cortázar, the elegant writing of Carlos Fuentes, and the smart thinking of Borges. For example, his book El arte de la resurrección is a funny love story. It takes place in the early 1940s during a strike by saltpeter miners in northern Chile. The story is about a folk preacher, El Cristo de Elqui, who wants a devoted woman named Magalena Mercado to become his follower.
His Books
Hernán Rivera Letelier has written many books. Here are some of them:
- La reina Isabel cantaba rancheras (The Queen Isabel Sang Mexican Music). 1994
- Fatamorgana de amor con banda de música (Mirage of Love with Band of Musicians). 1998
- Santa María de las flores negras (Santa María of the Black Flowers). 2002
- El Fantasista (The Fantasist). 2007
- La Contadora de Películas (The Movie-Teller). 2009
- El arte de la resurrección (The Art of Resurrection). 2010
- Historia de Amor con Hombre Bailando (Love Story with a Dancing Man). 2013
- El vendedor de pájaros (The Bird-Seller). 2014
- La muerte tiene olor a Pachuli (Death Smells of Pachuli). 2017
- La muerte ... in Havana (Death ... in Havana). 2017
- El hombre que miraba al cielo (The Man Who Looked at the Sky). 2018
- El autodidacta (The Self-Taught Man). 2019
- El secuestro de la hermana Tegualda (The Kidnapping of Sister Tegualda). 2021
Books in Other Languages
Many of Hernán Rivera Letelier's books have been translated into different languages. These include French, Italian, Portuguese, German, Dutch, Polish, and Turkish. An English version of La Contadora de Películas (The Movie-Teller) was published in November 2023.
Movie Adaptations
A movie based on his book La Contadora de Películas (The Movie-Teller) was released in 2023. It was directed by Lone Scherfig and starred Bérénice Beko, Daniel Brühl, and Antonio de la Torre. Hernán Rivera Letelier helped write the movie's script along with Isabel Coixet and Rafa Russo.
See also
In Spanish: Hernán Rivera Letelier para niños
