Is anyone familiar with the work of Jorge Luis Borges?

Question

I know that he's largely unknown to the majority of the public, but I've read some of his stuff and it's amazing. Just wondering if anyone else had an opinion of his work.

Answer 1

Oh yeah, he is unbelievable. Literally. LABYRINTHS, one of his collections of short stories and non fictions, is certainly one of the most amazing pieces of literature that I have ever read. Admittedly, most of his stuff is beyond my level of comprehension, but his outrageous style and language and story-telling ability far more than compensate for it.

It's quite a shame that, as you said, he is not widely known, because his stuff is so wonderfully good. At the same time, however, I think that maybe this is a good thing, because I don't think that most people would understand his genius.  

Answer 2

He's fantastic, but you're right that most people outside of academia don't know who he is. He's a bit too deep for light reading, haha. Personally I love his stories, even if I can't entirely grasp them - I think that's part of the point he's trying to make, really.

If you like Borges, you should consider reading Roberto Bolano - he was very deeply influenced by Borges, and you can see it clearly in his novels and short stories. I'd recommend "Last Evenings on Earth", a collection of his short stories, as a starting place.