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José María Arguedas was a Peruvian teacher, writer, musicologist and ethnologist. He wrote in Quechua and in Spanish. Deep Rivers is a semi-autobiographical novel mostly set in & around Abancay, & told through the eyes of Ernesto, a young boarder whose dad is an itinerant lawyer (didn't know that was a thing!) It shows how violently hierarchical #Peru was at the start of the 20th c. A classic for good reason.
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I think, culturally, this book is important. Arguedas so fully and lovingly depicts Peru, I really want to visit. Ernesto, the narrator, is a boy at the center of a whirlpool, surrounded on all sides by violence and death. A boy caught between two cultures. Ernesto often waxes nostalgic, like a man close to death instead of a 14-year-old boy. It‘s an overwhelming, fascinating read. This was my #DoubleBookSpin for April. 220/1,001 #1001Books

This one is on the list for 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. It‘s easy to see why but it‘s one you‘ll probably have to sit with awhile.

The author is Peruvian & though written in Spanish (“Los ríos profundos”) it did have some delay in translation as several words & passages are Quechua.

The attached photo is the Apurimac, befitting the title. The “Deep Rivers” here are both of Peruvian geography as well as its Andean roots & culture.

Objectively speaking, this book is a pick. A cross between stream of consciousness & social realism, it takes you deep into the heart of the Andes, & the natural landscape of Peru is lovingly described. Seen through the memories of a young boy, it washes over you like a dream. The Catholic boys' school is a microcosm of the brutality of colonisation & the impact on the indigenous people. But the school setting was also the hardest to read. ⬇️

A picture of me and the boyfriend💕, ages ago, near one of the deep rivers in Peru. I think it is such a fascinating country and I was looking forward to this book.

Ernesto‘s life in a boarding school reflects the internal conflicts in Peru: the struggle between the upper class and the oppressed indigenous population and the role of religion.
Unfortunately its style made it hard for me to read and finish the story.

#readaroundtheworld #1001books

#readaroundtheworld #peru @JenP A most remarkable book in which our main character, a young boy, contains within him the clash and contradictions of multiple cultures. He remembers vividly and yearns for the stones, the birds, and the rivers of his youth. He aligns himself with the indigenous people of dignity and yet lives with the white people with their Catholic beliefs. He is both a young man and a boy. And his stories are so alive.

On the bank of a great river very far from Peru, I was taking a ferry and two sisters sat down across from me and exclaimed: Rios Profundos! They were from Peru and we met on a river half way around the world.

Hello! This is what I'm #currentlyreading at the moment. It's a classic of Peruvian literature that I need to read for my Latin American lit class.

#latinamericanlit #peruvianlit #literaturalatinoamericana #diversebooks #latinx