Description
This is a seismic novel, both in its ideas and its scenes. Its reader (like its translator) will emerge bewildered, perplexed, entertained, and indignant. Upon turning the final page, they will find themselves facing the inevitable question: What next?
The novel presents a conflict (and what is a novel without it?) between two camps, two forces. One might assume that the author represents (or adopts) one side of the conflict, but Vargas Llosa’s skill—or one of his many skills—lies in his unique approach.
No sooner do you find yourself siding with one side, whether through the strength of the argument, the significance of the actions, or emotional empathy, than the author, through the same factors, pulls you back to the other side.
One might ask, seeking to simplify matters: Is the novel attempting to reconcile the anarchic revolutionary fervor of the late 19th century with the religious fanaticism that, in part, rejects injustice? Is the harmony serious or satirical?… The novel offers dozens of clues to both.
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