Pagine1904–1973 · Parral, Chile · also known as Neruda, Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto
Pablo Neruda published Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair (1924) at 19; it became one of the best-selling poetry books in Spanish. A diplomat and Communist senator, he wrote the epic Canto General (1950), a history of the Americas in verse, and the playful Odes to Common Things — to tomatoes, socks and onions. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1971 and died twelve days after the 1973 military coup in Chile.
Begin with Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair.
Part of our Latin American Classics reading list — print it, email it to yourself or share it.
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz · Machado de Assis · Rubén Darío · Horacio Quiroga · Gabriela Mistral · Jorge Luis Borges · Juan Rulfo · Julio Cortázar · Gabriel García Márquez · Mario Vargas Llosa · Isabel Allende
Pablo Neruda published Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair (1924) at 19; it became one of the best-selling poetry books in Spanish. A diplomat and Communist senator, he wrote the epic Canto General (1950), a history of the Americas in verse, and the playful Odes to Common Things — to tomatoes, socks and onions.
Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair is usually considered Pablo Neruda’s best-known work, followed by Canto General, Odes to Common Things.
Most readers start with Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair.
Both refer to the same writer. Other spellings and names include Neruda, Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto.
Pablo Neruda’s books are still under copyright, so they are not free to download, but many can be borrowed free from your public library or Open Library — we link to them below.