Tierra del Fuego cover

Tierra del Fuego

by Sylvia Iparraguirre

"Tierra del Fuego is a suspenseful seafaring tale in the tradition of Horatio Hornblower, enriched by a chilling psychological and cultural tale that probes deeply into human nature - one reminiscent of Heart of Darkness or Lord of the Flies. It is based on the true story of the Yamana Indian, Jemmy Button, parts of which are recorded in Chapter 10 of Charles Darwin's The Voyage of the Beagle. This novel explores Captain Robert Fitzroy's abduction of Jemmy Button from his home in Cape Horn and Fitzroy's attempt to "civilize" Button in England in order to return him to his country as a bearer of "enlightened society." The experiment leads to tragic consequences. Tierra del Fuego deals with European arrogance and exploitation without resorting to the cliche of the "Noble Savage."". "The tale is told from the point of view of John William Guevera, an "outsider" with an English father and Argentinean mother. Guevera, living between those two worlds, is one of the few characters in the novel who can foresee the tragic consequences of the "experiment" and who can best understand Jemmy Button and the political machinery behind the curtain of "civilized society.""--BOOK JACKET.

Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?