Chilean writer and journalist to visit Jamaica

Chilean journalist and writer, Marcelo Simonetti, will be visiting Jamaica from December 1-5 as a guest of his country's mission here.

Simonetti is visiting the island to talk about the English edition of his novel Tito, which has been translated from Spanish, with the support of the Translation Programme for Chilean Works Abroad under the Ministry of Foreign Relations Directorate for Cultural Affairs (DIRAC).

In announcing plans for the writer's visit, Chilean Ambassador to Jamaica Eduardo J. Bonilla said "We are pleased to introduce Chilean literature to Jamaican readers through the visit of Simonetti and the translation of his important young adult novel into English. It is tangible evidence of my government's commitment to the promotion of cultural exchange between Chile and Jamaica."

While in Jamaica, Simonetti will meet with students and faculty at the University of the West Indies, school teachers and education officials, fellow writers and other literary interests. He will be the special guest at a class of students at Missionaries of the Poor in Kingston who are currently learning Spanish. Simonetti will also meet with his local publishers, Ian Randle Publishers, who expect to release Tito early in 2018. It will be Simonetti's first book to be translated from Spanish and published in English.

Simonetti says he is excited by the prospect of his Jamaican visit and looks forward to sharing his novel Tito, as he believes that the coming of age story with its universal themes of boyhood innocence, adolescent fantasies and the magic of first love will strike a familiar chord among young readers in Jamaica.

Simonetti is a journalist and writer who has published four novels, two short story collections and two illustrated books. He has won several literary prizes including the Casa de America Prize from Spain. He writes for the sports section of La Tercera newspaper in Chile.