Hernan Letelier

HERNAN RIVERA LETELIER grew up and worked for many years in the saltpeter mines of Atacama, in northern Chile. His novel La Reina cantaba rancheras (Queen Isabel Sang Rancheras) catapulted him to fame, turning into one of the most widespread literary works in recent Chilean fiction. Two years later, he won the National Book Award again. His most well-known novel La contadora de películas (The Movie-teller) has been translated into 19 languages and is now a major motion picture directed by Lone Scherfit. In 2001, Rivera Letelier was named Chevalier of the Order of Arts and Literature by the French Ministry of Culture and in 2019, he received the Yasnaya Polyana Prize for El arte de la resurección (The art of resurrection).