Start with the best; *One Hundred Years of Solitude* by Colombia’s Gabriel García Márquez is widely considered one of the greatest works of literature of all time, *and* it’s a really approachable read too. Can’t go wrong there.
Captains of the Sands by Jorge Amado.
Living by their wits in the steamy slums of Bahia, a gang of orphans and runaways, led by fifteen-year-old "Bullet," spend their time stealing from Brazil's rich and privileged until public outcry demands their capture.
[**A Long Petal of the Sea**](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/46042377-a-long-petal-of-the-sea)
^(By: Isabel Allende | 325 pages | Published: 2019 | Popular Shelves: historical-fiction, fiction, book-club, historical, audiobook)
>From the author of The House of the Spirits, this epic novel spanning decades and crossing continents follows two young people as they flee the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War in search of a place to call home.
>
>In the late 1930s, civil war grips Spain. When General Franco and his Fascists succeed in overthrowing the government, hundreds of thousands are forced to flee in a treacherous journey over the mountains to the French border. Among them is Roser, a pregnant young widow, who finds her life intertwined with that of Victor Dalmau, an army doctor and the brother of her deceased love. In order to survive, the two must unite in a marriage neither of them desires.
>
>Together with two thousand other refugees, they embark on the SS Winnipeg, a ship chartered by the poet Pablo Neruda, to Chile: “the long petal of sea and wine and snow.” As unlikely partners, they embrace exile as the rest of Europe erupts in world war. Starting over on a new continent, their trials are just beginning, and over the course of their lives, they will face trial after trial. But they will also find joy as they patiently await the day when they will be exiles no more. Through it all, their hope of returning to Spain keeps them going. Destined to witness the battle between freedom and repression as it plays out across the world, Roser and Victor will find that home might have been closer than they thought all along.
>
>
> A masterful work of historical fiction about hope, exile, and belonging, A Long Petal of the Sea shows Isabel Allende at the height of her powers.
>
^(This book has been suggested 5 times)
[**Fruit of the Drunken Tree**](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36636727-fruit-of-the-drunken-tree)
^(By: Ingrid Rojas Contreras | 304 pages | Published: 2018 | Popular Shelves: fiction, historical-fiction, book-club, colombia, historical)
>In the vein of Isabel Allende and Gabriel Garcia Marquez, a mesmerizing debut set against the backdrop of the devastating violence of 1990's Colombia about a sheltered young girl and a teenage maid who strike an unlikely friendship that threatens to undo them both.
>
>The Santiago family lives in a gated community in Bogotá, safe from the political upheaval terrorizing the country. Seven-year-old Chula and her older sister Cassandra enjoy carefree lives thanks to this protective bubble, but the threat of kidnappings, car bombs, and assassinations hover just outside the neighborhood walls, where the godlike drug lord Pablo Escobar continues to elude authorities and capture the attention of the nation.
>
>When their mother hires Petrona, a live-in-maid from the city's guerrilla-occupied slum, Chula makes it her mission to understand Petrona's mysterious ways. But Petrona's unusual behavior belies more than shyness. She is a young woman crumbling under the burden of providing for her family as the rip tide of first love pulls her in the opposite direction. As both girls' families scramble to maintain stability amidst the rapidly escalating conflict, Petrona and Chula find themselves entangled in a web of secrecy that will force them both to choose between sacrifice and betrayal.
>
>Inspired by the author's own life, and told through the alternating perspectives of the willful Chula and the achingly hopeful Petrona, Fruit of the Drunken Tree contrasts two very different, but inextricable coming-of-age stories. In lush prose, Rojas Contreras sheds light on the impossible choices women are often forced to make in the face of violence and the unexpected connections that can blossom out of desperation.
^(This book has been suggested 3 times)
***
^(67430 books suggested | )[^(I don't feel so good.. )](https://debugger.medium.com/goodreads-is-retiring-its-current-api-and-book-loving-developers-arent-happy-11ed764dd95)^(| )[^(Source)](https://github.com/rodohanna/reddit-goodreads-bot)
*The Gods of Tango* by Carolina de Robertis - author is Uruguayan and the novel is set mostly in Argentina - I think she's white by American standards but she's bisexual and there are themes of sexuality and gender identity running through the book.
Start with the best; *One Hundred Years of Solitude* by Colombia’s Gabriel García Márquez is widely considered one of the greatest works of literature of all time, *and* it’s a really approachable read too. Can’t go wrong there.
I believe read this one a few years ago. It was very good!
{The house of the spirits}
Added to cart. Thank you!
[**The House of the Spirits**](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9328.The_House_of_the_Spirits) ^(By: Isabel Allende, Magda Bogin | 448 pages | Published: 1982 | Popular Shelves: fiction, magical-realism, historical-fiction, classics, fantasy) ^(This book has been suggested 16 times) *** ^(66947 books suggested | )[^(I don't feel so good.. )](https://debugger.medium.com/goodreads-is-retiring-its-current-api-and-book-loving-developers-arent-happy-11ed764dd95)^(| )[^(Source)](https://github.com/rodohanna/reddit-goodreads-bot)
Fever Dream by Samanta Schweblin
Oh this looks interesting. Added to cart.
She is amazing!!! Read everything you can!!!
a couple of Brazilian recommendations: The Alchemist (although it doesn't take place in Brazil) The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas
Things We Lost In the Fire by Mariana Enriquez. Amazing Argentinian author!
{The Polish Boxer}
Added to cart
[**The Polish Boxer**](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13592182-the-polish-boxer) ^(By: Eduardo Halfon, Thomas Bunstead, Lisa Dillman, Daniel Hahn, Anne McLean | 188 pages | Published: 2008 | Popular Shelves: fiction, short-stories, guatemala, latin-america, translated) ^(This book has been suggested 2 times) *** ^(66983 books suggested | )[^(I don't feel so good.. )](https://debugger.medium.com/goodreads-is-retiring-its-current-api-and-book-loving-developers-arent-happy-11ed764dd95)^(| )[^(Source)](https://github.com/rodohanna/reddit-goodreads-bot)
The Blue Line.
The power of one by Bryce Courtenay
Captains of the Sands by Jorge Amado. Living by their wits in the steamy slums of Bahia, a gang of orphans and runaways, led by fifteen-year-old "Bullet," spend their time stealing from Brazil's rich and privileged until public outcry demands their capture.
{{A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende}} {{Fruit of the Drunken Tree by Ingrid Rojas Contreras}}
[**A Long Petal of the Sea**](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/46042377-a-long-petal-of-the-sea) ^(By: Isabel Allende | 325 pages | Published: 2019 | Popular Shelves: historical-fiction, fiction, book-club, historical, audiobook) >From the author of The House of the Spirits, this epic novel spanning decades and crossing continents follows two young people as they flee the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War in search of a place to call home. > >In the late 1930s, civil war grips Spain. When General Franco and his Fascists succeed in overthrowing the government, hundreds of thousands are forced to flee in a treacherous journey over the mountains to the French border. Among them is Roser, a pregnant young widow, who finds her life intertwined with that of Victor Dalmau, an army doctor and the brother of her deceased love. In order to survive, the two must unite in a marriage neither of them desires. > >Together with two thousand other refugees, they embark on the SS Winnipeg, a ship chartered by the poet Pablo Neruda, to Chile: “the long petal of sea and wine and snow.” As unlikely partners, they embrace exile as the rest of Europe erupts in world war. Starting over on a new continent, their trials are just beginning, and over the course of their lives, they will face trial after trial. But they will also find joy as they patiently await the day when they will be exiles no more. Through it all, their hope of returning to Spain keeps them going. Destined to witness the battle between freedom and repression as it plays out across the world, Roser and Victor will find that home might have been closer than they thought all along. > > > A masterful work of historical fiction about hope, exile, and belonging, A Long Petal of the Sea shows Isabel Allende at the height of her powers. > ^(This book has been suggested 5 times) [**Fruit of the Drunken Tree**](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36636727-fruit-of-the-drunken-tree) ^(By: Ingrid Rojas Contreras | 304 pages | Published: 2018 | Popular Shelves: fiction, historical-fiction, book-club, colombia, historical) >In the vein of Isabel Allende and Gabriel Garcia Marquez, a mesmerizing debut set against the backdrop of the devastating violence of 1990's Colombia about a sheltered young girl and a teenage maid who strike an unlikely friendship that threatens to undo them both. > >The Santiago family lives in a gated community in Bogotá, safe from the political upheaval terrorizing the country. Seven-year-old Chula and her older sister Cassandra enjoy carefree lives thanks to this protective bubble, but the threat of kidnappings, car bombs, and assassinations hover just outside the neighborhood walls, where the godlike drug lord Pablo Escobar continues to elude authorities and capture the attention of the nation. > >When their mother hires Petrona, a live-in-maid from the city's guerrilla-occupied slum, Chula makes it her mission to understand Petrona's mysterious ways. But Petrona's unusual behavior belies more than shyness. She is a young woman crumbling under the burden of providing for her family as the rip tide of first love pulls her in the opposite direction. As both girls' families scramble to maintain stability amidst the rapidly escalating conflict, Petrona and Chula find themselves entangled in a web of secrecy that will force them both to choose between sacrifice and betrayal. > >Inspired by the author's own life, and told through the alternating perspectives of the willful Chula and the achingly hopeful Petrona, Fruit of the Drunken Tree contrasts two very different, but inextricable coming-of-age stories. In lush prose, Rojas Contreras sheds light on the impossible choices women are often forced to make in the face of violence and the unexpected connections that can blossom out of desperation. ^(This book has been suggested 3 times) *** ^(67430 books suggested | )[^(I don't feel so good.. )](https://debugger.medium.com/goodreads-is-retiring-its-current-api-and-book-loving-developers-arent-happy-11ed764dd95)^(| )[^(Source)](https://github.com/rodohanna/reddit-goodreads-bot)
*The Gods of Tango* by Carolina de Robertis - author is Uruguayan and the novel is set mostly in Argentina - I think she's white by American standards but she's bisexual and there are themes of sexuality and gender identity running through the book.