Literary resources for travel to Peru

August 10, 2014 9:51 AM

My lovely wife and I are traveling to Peru in early September. We're looking for novels and stories (maybe poetry too?) that will give us a feel for what things are like there.

We don't need travel guides or anything like that. We just want to get a picture of what life is like, the culture, literature, music, etc. We are going to: Lima, Nazca, Arequipa, Cuzco, and the Amazon near Puerto Maldonado. Give us your best recommendations! (I already know about this question.

posted by number9dream to Travel & Transportation around Peru (3 answers total)

On the indigenous side of things, I'd recommend Jose Maria Arguedas' Deep Rivers. And a literary exploration of Peru would not be complete without reading something by No el prize winner Mario Vargas Llosa--Conversation in the Catherdral is considered his strongest exposition of specifically Peruvian themes of politics and society.
posted by drlith at 10:27 AM on August 10, 2014 [1 favorite]

It's not new, but I still would would recommend Cut Stones and Crossroads by Ronald Wright.
posted by gudrun at 10:35 AM on August 10, 2014 [1 favorite]

You don't say if you're doing the Inca Trail but the classic "Alturas de Machu Picchu" by Neruda never fails to inspire.
posted by wayward vagabond at 10:37 AM on August 10, 2014