The Underdogs
Mariano Azuela · 1873–1952 · Mexico
Originally Los de abajo (Spanish)
Why it matters
A peasant band is swept into revolutionary violence they barely understand or control. Written amid the actual fighting, it remains the Mexican Revolution's first great, unheroic novel.
At a glance
war novelhistorical fiction
Difficulty 4/10fast pace148 pagesEpisodic, fast-moving chapters follow chaotic violence without much interior reflection.
Deep dive
Why the novel keeps its revolutionaries too busy looting and drifting to ever explain what, exactly, they're fighting for.
Where to go next
Horacio Quiroga · 1917Stories of Love, Madness, and DeathLvl 4Fast paced
Rómulo Gallegos · 1929Doña BárbaraLvl 4Medium pace
Ricardo Güiraldes · 1926Don Segundo SombraLvl 5Medium pace
Elena Garro · 1963Recollections of Things to ComeLvl 7Slow burn
Augusto Roa Bastos · 1974I, the SupremeLvl 9Slow burn
Juan José Saer · 1983The WitnessLvl 7Slow burn