Rach's Reading Club

It definitely wasn't easy, for sure! If you count the Falkland Islands as part of South America (depends on who you ask, Argentina says the Falklands belongs to them and Google says they're part of South America, but the Falklands don't claim Argentina and I'm not sure what continent they think they belong to since they call themselves The Gateway to Antarctica lol), there's a lot of stuff about the Falkland War in 1982 and a variety of other things. I'm going to listen to That Bear Ate My Pants!: Life and Near Death in an Ecuadorian Animal Refuge by Tony James Slater. I don't recall exactly, but think it was an American that went to Ecuador (South America) to work in a wildlife refuge? I don't know, but it's supposed to be true(-ish?) and sounded funny. I was going to listen to The Name of God is Mercy by Pope Francis (Argentina), but then decided it was probably too short at only 176 pages. So, I'm going to listen to On Writing by Jorge Luis Borges (Argentina).

This one isn't (I don't think) officially a political novel, but there's a lot of mention of politics with political asylum requests, immigration concerns, etc.

Good luck finding a South American author! TBH, it was harder than I expected. Not that there aren't any, but getting one that's been translated AND wrote something I'm interested in (at least vaguely) AND has a good rating on Audible, that was a bigger challenge than I thought. If only we could search by the nation the author was from, I'm 100% sure there are a lot of South American authors on Audible. I just can't find them.

Oh, I suddenly realized I could at least search each country, if I couldn't by the author's country of origin. Yeah, I can be slow. Here are some I found.

Peru

Turn Right at Machu Picchu: Rediscovering the Lost City One Step at a Time
By: Mark Adams
Rated 4.4

The Case of the Welched Reward: Spies, the FBI and Pursuit of Peru's Most Infamous Fugitive
By: Mark A. Cymrot
Not yet rated on Audible, but I decided I needed this book. It's a true story, my favorite kind. It makes me feel better about my life when things go wrong because I figure at least my life isn't so horrible it would make a good book.

I just noticed this was already in my Audible library. I went hunting for other stuff and bought things I was less interested in because I didn't know this was in there. Well, I can't say I'm surprised. lol Anyway, this author is from Peru...or at least I'm pretty sure that's what his Spanish author's page on Audible says. Based on the rating, this should be a good one.
The Feast of the Goat: A Novel
By: Mario Vargas Llosa, Edith Grossman - translator
Rated 4.8

Dang it! I've now added this one, too.
High: My Prison Journey as One of the Infamous Peru Two
By: Michaella McCollum
Rated 4.7

Thunderbirds: Peril in Peru
By: John Theydon, Chris Dale
Rated 5.0, but it only has 3 ratings. lol
This one is sci-fi

Chile

Ugh! Another added to my list! WHY couldn't I have come up with THIS idea before? Well, at least I know how to hunt down African and Asian books. Remember the rugby team that crashed in the Andes? This is a book by one of them.
Miracle in the Andes: 72 Days on the Mountain and My Long Trek Home
By: Nando Parrado, Vince Rause
Rated 4.6

Yep, I definitely added this one. lol
Behind Friendly Lines: Memoirs of a US Marine in Chile
By: Mark McGraw
Rated 5.0, but it does only have 1 rating.

The 33: Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free
By: Héctor Tobar
Rated 4.3
I don't normally add books below 4.5, but I will if they're a true story...and I added this one.

Chilean Poet: A Novel
By: Alejandro Zambra, Megan McDowell - translator
Rated 4.5

This is unrated, but the description called it a piece of classic German literature and called it "edgy" and "sexually charged." I assume by the title that it takes place in Chile?
The Marquise of O: The Earthquake in Chile, The Foundling and Michael Kohlhaas
By: Heinrich Von Kleist

This one is unrated and I'm not sure why it came up in my search...oh, wait, the narrator's last name is Chiles lol, but it will work for the disability category, if you're in need. He was a promising young athlete who became blind -- true story. Yep, I'm adding this one.
From Light to Dark: The Story of Blind Dave Heeley
By: Dave Heeley

I never saw the movie (but mean to one day), so I can't say, but I suspect this is Central AND South America. I added this one, too. It's a medical student who rides his bike through Latin America.
The Motorcycle Diaries: Notes on a Latin American Journey
By: Ernesto Che Guevara, Aleida Guevara - foreword
Rated 4.5

Added this, too. GEEZ I hate that I didn't wait longer, though I did have to balance the book categories for you with the years 2001-2024 for the library challenge here, so maybe it wouldn't have worked anyway. Yep, I'll tell myself that. This is the rugby team who crashed in the Andes.
Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors
By: Piers Paul Read
Rated 4.7 BTW, these are the Audible ratings because that's where I'm searching, you know, because I don't yet have 7000 books in my library (but I'm concerningly close {e:laugh). {E:angelic}

The Book of Sand and Shakespeare's Memory
By: Jorge Luis Borges, Andrew Hurley - editor translator introduction
Rated 5.0, but it's only got 1 rating. lol
This is a collection of his short stories.

Pope Francis: Conversations with Jorge Bergoglio (That's the Pope's given name, BTW. I added this too, like any good Catholic would. lol)
His Life in His Own Words
By: Sergio Rubin, Francesca Ambrogetti
Rated 4.7

Already in my library. I knew I'd have some.
The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina: A Novel
By: Zoraida Córdova
Rated 4.5

Added yet another...
Made for the Journey: One Missionary's First Year in the Jungles of Ecuador
By: Elisabeth Elliot, Kay Warren
Rated 4.8

Feet and Wheels to Chimborazo: A Unique Climbing and Cycling Adventure to the Summit of Ecuador
By: Mark Horrell
Rated 5.0, but it only has 3 ratings

This isn't rated yet, but I think I remember that you like murder mysteries...or someone I've talked to recently does. lol
Hard Blue Empty: A Mystery Novel
By: Dwight Holing

I heard good things about this movie, so I added this one. It's also a true story, my soft spot.
End of the Spear
By: Steve Saint
Rated 4.7

Bolivia
I added this, too. Mind you, a lot of these are being added to my Wish List, not fully to my library yet. I don't have THAT much money. Anyway, this is a kid's book (11 hrs long) about a girl whose brother is often ill so she volunteers to work in the silver mines in his place, but then there's a mining accident that leaves her father dead and brother missing. (Uh, thought the brother wasn't supposed to be in the mines, but guess I'll have to listen to find out what's going on. lol)
Treasure of the World
By: Tara Sullivan
Rated 4.8

Brazil
Since you like WWII novels, this is a fictional novel about Nazis in Brazil and trying to route them out...at least I think that's what it's about from my skim of the description. I added it.
The Boys from Brazil
By: Ira Levin
Rated 4.7