This article was written by  and originally appeared on the student-ran GLOCAL Experience blog and was written by GLOCAL student SzuTung Chen. You can view the original article here, and make sure to keep up-to-date with the GLOCAL Experience for a greater insight into life as a GLOCAL student.

Note: The GLOCAL Consortium values our student and alumni communities enormously but it’s important to note that the content of the GLOCAL Experience website and social media accounts do not in any way represent the official view or position of the Consortium or any of the Consortium partner universities.

Latin America is often neglected by the global economy and in politics, but after studying for three months in Bogotá, learning so much about its history, entrepreneurship, capitalism, and sustainability issues, and having first-hand experiences working and interacting with local people, I have to say Latin America is a truly magical place. A land with a tragic history, but also full of hope, passion, and happiness!

I have been struggling to pen down this magical, bitter-sweet experience, so I turned to what we love most in GLOCAL — BOOKS! I will let these amazing Latin American authors tell you about their homes and stories!

Below, I have collected recommended books from my Latin American GLOCAL friends and Los Andes professors to help readers understand more about this amazing region. If you are traveling to Bogota for the third semester, it’s recommended to read some of these books to get yourself prepared. But even if you are not going to Colombia during your third semester, these books will certainly take you there!

Colombia: Fragmented Land, Divided Society

• Author: Frank Safford and Marco Palacios
• First Published Year: 2001
• Recommended by:
  Professor Andrea Lluch (Argentina)

• Author: Marco Palacios
• First Published Year: 2006
• Recommended by:
  Professor Andrea Lluch (Argentina)

• Author: Lina Britto
• First Published Year: 2020
• Recommended by:
  Professor Xavier Duran (Colombia)

• Author: Victor Bulmer-Thomas
• First Published Year: 1995
• Recommended by:
  Professor Andrea Lluch (Argentina)
  Professor Xavier Duran (Colombia)

• Author: John Charles Chasteen
• First Published Year: 2000
• Recommended by:
  Professor Andrea Lluch (Argentina)

• Editor: Mauricio Tenorio-Trillo
• First Published Year: 2017
• Recommended by:
  Professor Andrea Lluch (Argentina)
• “For a discussion of the idea of Latin America (cultural studies)

• Editor: James A. Wood and John Charles Chasteen
• First Published Year: 2009
• Recommended by:
  Professor Andrea Lluch (Argentina)

• Editors: Steven Topik, Carlos Marichal, Zephyr L. Frank
• First Published Year: 2006
• Recommended by:
  Professor Xavier Duran (Colombia)

• Author: Paul Gootenberg
• First Published Year: 2008
• Recommended by:
  Professor Xavier Duran (Colombia)

• Editor: Rory M. Miller
• First Published Year: 2007
• Recommended by:
  Professor Xavier Duran (Colombia)

• Editor: James N. Green
• First Published Year: 2018
• Recommended by:
  Professor Andrea Lluch (Argentina)

• Author: Leonardo Padura
• First Published Year: 2009
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL V – José Castillo Bermúdez (Guatemala)
• “It’s a great novel to understand Latin America in a global context in the 20th Century!”

• Author: Eduardo Galeano
• First Published Year: 1971
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL V – Johan Velasco (Colombia)

• Author: Gabriel García Márquez
• Country: Colombia
• First Published Year: 1985
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL V – Johan Velasco (Colombia)

• Author: Gabriel García Márquez
• Country: Colombia
• First Published Year: 1967
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL V – María Luisa Mészáros Ortiz
  (Costa Rica)
  GLOCAL V – Nuria Peregrin (Cuba)

• Author: Gabriel García Márquez
• Country: Colombia
• First Published Year: 2004
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL VI – Juliana Bastos de Mello (Brazil)

• Author: Mario Vargas Llosa
• Country: Peru
• First Published Year: 2000
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL V – Johan Velasco (Colombia)
  GLOCAL V – Nuria Peregrin (Cuba)

• Author: Laura Esquivel
• Country: Mexico
• First Published Year: 1989
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL V – Laura Ortiz (Mexico)

• Author: Jorge Amado
• First Published Year: 1937
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL V – Natasha Briguet (Brazil)

• Author: Diego Fonseca
• First Published Year: 2013
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL V – José Castillo Bermúdez (Guatemala)
• “It’s a great compilation of articles.”

• Author: Juan Rulfo
• Country: Mexico
• First Published Year: 1955
• Recommended by:
  Professor Andrea Lluch (Argentina)

• Author: Julio Cortázar
• Country: Argentina
• First Published Year: 1963
• Recommended by:
  Professor Andrea Lluch (Argentina) and
  GLOCAL V – Nuria Peregrin (Cuba)

• Author: Isabel Allende
• Country: Chile
• First Published Year: 1982
• Recommended by:
  Professor Andrea Lluch (Argentina)

• Author: Isabel Allende
• Country: Chile
• First Published Year: 2006
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL V – Laura Ortiz (Mexico)

• Author: Gabriela Mistral
• Country: Chile
• First Published Year: 1979
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL V – Laura Ortiz (Mexico)

• Author: Alejo Carpentier
• Country: Cuba
• First Published Year: 1949
• Recommended by:
  Professor Andrea Lluch (Argentina)
• “The book is about the Haitian Revolution and Henri Christophe, a former slave who became Haiti’s first king.”

• Author: Monteiro Lobato
• Country: Brazil
• First Published Year: 1936
• Recommended by:
  GLOCAL V – Gabriela Varejão (Brazil)