In 2005, The Absent Sea was unanimously awarded the prestigious International Novel Prize of La Nación / Sudamericana, in Buenos Aires. It has since been translated into five languages and will appear, for the first time, in English in April 2011 (published by McPherson and Co.).   Born in Switzerland, he was raised in Chile, where he  studied law and attended the literary workshop of José Donoso. Later he founded the Chilean National Library Literary Workshop. He has been awarded fellowships to Germany and two universities in England, and has served as a cultural attaché of Chile. Currently, he lives in Madrid with his wife and daughter.