Novel
La sangre y la esperanza
Not translated into English
Nicomedes Guzmán · 1943
Synopsis
A working-class child remembers his childhood in a conventillo in Santiago, on the banks of the Mapocho, in the thirties, at the time of the tramway employees' strike. Through his memory appear the misery, vice, theft, sex and violence of everyday life, but also the tenderness, love and generosity of humble people, with their conflicts, grudges, desires and hopes. The author described this district as a tragic suburb, yet one of fierce and invasive beauty.
Context
The novel appeared in 1943, four years after Los hombres obscuros, the author's first novel. The publisher's presentation regards it as a landmark work of the writers of 1938, who took the urban proletariat as their subject. The author said he had wanted to render the atmosphere of the neighbourhood where he had grown up. The book has been reissued several times, including a fifth edition in 1957, with a prologue by Ricardo A. Latcham.
Who it is for
A novel of memory from a child's perspective, in the language of working-class neighbourhoods; no translation found.
Prizes and reception
For Memoria Chilena, a novel noted for its portrayal of the poor neighbourhoods and for its bold, direct language.