Think you spend too much on books? In Peru, a book can cost as much as 20 percent of an average workers weekly salary, and library funding is near non-existent. It’s resulted in a big market for cheap and illegal books. Underground publishing thrives in Peru …complete with its own version of the book mafia…and pirated science projects for kids!
Amazonas, the downtown Lima outdoor book market, has more than 200 informal book sellers peddling everything from fake copies of the classics to pirated copies of current hits. Listen to this interview on NPR’s Worldview with writer Daniel Alarcón, who searched the streets of Lima for his own pirated novel Lost City Radio while writing the recent article, “Life Among the Pirates” for Granta Magazine.
Lesley W.
