Have you read (or are you reading) Roberto Bolaño’s 2666 yet? We may have mentioned it once or twice here at The Rumpus, but only once or twice. Needless to say the book has been, rightfully, getting a lot of hype.

Over at The Millions though, Garth Risk Hallberg worries that the hype may be doing readers unfamiliar with Bolaño’s work a disservice. “Like Joyce’s, Bolaño’s is a sensibility that demands immersion, and for the kind of person who prefers to adjust to the swimming pool by inches rather than jumping straight into the deep end, the massive 2666 may have felt a lot like drowning.”

Thus Hallberg has created “A Bolaño Syllabus,” a guide to help “acclimate newcomers to this odd and essential author,” and “continue mapping the Bolañoverse.” And with more translations of Bolaño’s work on the the way, Hallberg has promised to keep his syllabus up to date.

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