The Dead Man: Borges Marathon, Part 28
Borges takes us to the vast plains of the Brazilian frontier for an epic battle of wills between a grizzled gang leader and an ambitious pretender.
The South: Borges Marathon, Part 26
Borges said "The South" may be his best story and hinted at other ways of reading it. I take a look at what those other ways might be.
Borges Marathon, Part 25: The Cult of the Phoenix
What is the mysterious ritual at the centre of this Jorge Luis Borges story? Let's go through the hints and solve the riddle.
Borges Marathon, Part 21: Death and the Compass
In this short story by Jorge Luis Borges, a detective tale becomes a labyrinth in which the usual crime fiction tropes are subverted.
Borges Marathon, Part 20: The Theme of the Traitor and the Hero
Treachery and heroism blur in this meticulously plotted short story by Jorge Luis Borges, with noticeable echoes from history and literature.
Borges Marathon, Part 19: The Shape of the Sword
With shifting narrators and a big twist at the end, this short story by Jorge Luis Borges tackles themes of violence, vengeance, the clash of theory and practice, and how we judge others.
Borges Marathon, Part 18: Funes, His Memory
My thoughts on Funes, His Memory, aka Funes the Memorious, a short fiction by Jorge Luis Borges about a man with an infinite memory.
Borges Marathon, Part 17: The Garden of Forking Paths
A pacy wartime thriller mixes with an abstract meditation on the forking paths of time and fate in a classic short story by Jorge Luis Borges.
Borges Marathon, Part 14: The Lottery in Babylon
How do you explain the effects of random chance? Borges invented an all-powerful Lottery governing all possible events in life to help us think through it.