Gabriel Garcia Marquez (1927 - 2014) Colombian novelist who started his career as a journalist, making a name for himself due to his excellent writing. One of the pioneers of "magic realism," he was a prolific writer. A mild-leftist, he was a personal friend of Castro, although generally his works were non-political and avoided social issues. Clandestine in Chile (1986): 120 pages. In this book Marquez narrates the story which Miguel Littín told him over a period exceeding 18hrs (which Marquez tape recorded). It deals with the clandestine trip of leftist film director and writer Miguel Littín to pinochet-ruled Chile to film an anti-pinochet documentary. An eye-witness account of pinochet's Chile, it is also a help to getting to know this amazing progressive film maker whose films I highly recommend. Short Stories Bon Voyage Mr. President: 34 pages. About Latin American exiles and the leftist Presidents deposed by military coups, and how they lived in exile, mostly forgotten and often harassed. No One Writes to the Colonel (1961): 64 pages. Deals with the political repression in Latin America and the unfortunate state of many elderly people, forgotten and ignored as soon as they retire and they are no longer "useful."