Conversation in the Cathedral (1969)

by Mario Vargas Llosa

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1,168	24	15,023	(4.12)	1 / 168
"Conversation in the Cathedral takes place in 1950s Peru during the dictatorship of Manuel A. Odria. Over beers and a sea of freely spoken words, the conversation flows between two individuals, Santiago and Ambrosia, who talk of their tormented lives and of the overall degradation and frustration that has slowly taken over their town. Through a complicated web of secrets and historical references, Mario Vargas Llosa analyzes the mental and moral mechanisms that govern power and the people behind it."--BOOK JACKET.… (more)

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	Author Theme Reads: Conversación en la catedral (Conversation in the Cathedral)	1 unread / 1	jfetting, February 2011

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English (18) Spanish (4) Portuguese (1) Catalan (1) All languages (24)

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3.25 (

)

DanielSTJ | May 24, 2022 |

According to the author, this book was written in a lapse of several years and in different cities. My opinion is that the author was drunk trying to accomplish this work. Not for everyone. Like some of the reviews mentioned, the narration goes back and forward but is not clear at what moment in time and who is speaking. (

)

lepensuer | Dec 4, 2017 |

I really liked some parts of the book and I love Mario Vargas-Llosa but I had trouble getting excited about the youthful political chapters. Even though it was well written, the posturing and pretentiousness of that age were irritating to me. (

)

ltfitch1 | Jun 5, 2016 |

A complicated historical novel that speaks to the importance of personal freedom. (

)

jwhenderson | Jul 27, 2014 |

Not for everyone. The narration goes back and forth in the story and some of the story lines interrupt each other. It makes sense in the end if you have the patience to get that far. Very well written the translator did a great job. (

)

charlie68 | Dec 12, 2013 |

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Canonical title

Conversation in the Cathedral

Original title

Conversación en la Catedral

Alternative titles

Original publication date

1969 (original Spanish)

1975 (English: Rabassa)

People/Characters

Ambrosio, Zavalita

Important places

Important events

Related movies

Awards and honors

Asturias Prize (Letters, 1986)

Best Spanish-language novels by Piero Scaruffi (54)

29 Best Latin American novels

Epigraph

Il faut avoir fouillé toute la vie sociale pour être un vrai romancier, vu que le roman est l'histoire privée des nations.

Balzac, 'Petites misères de la vié conjugale'.

"To be a true novelist one must delve into all of social existence, since the novel is the private history of nations".

Balzac, 'Little miseries of conjugal life'.

Dedication

To Luis Loayza and Abelardo Oquendo

First words

Desde la puerta de La Crónica Santiago mira la avenida Tacna.....

From the doorway of La Crónica Santiago looks at the Avenida Tacna without love: cars, uneven and faded buildings, the gaudy skeletons of posters floating in the mist, the gray midday.

Dalla porta de "La Crónica" Santiago guarda l'avenida Tacna, senza amore: automobili, edifici disuguali e scoloriti, scheletri di pubblicità luminosa che ondeggiano nella nebbiolina, il mezzogiorno grigio. In che momento si era fottuto il Perù?

Quotations

¿Cuándo se jodió el Perú?

Last words

(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

Disambiguation notice

Publisher's editors

Blurbers

Original language

Spanish

Canonical DDC/MDS

Canonical LCC

▾References

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Wikipedia in English (1)

Wikipedia:Peer review/Colectivo/archive1

▾Book descriptions

"Conversation in the Cathedral takes place in 1950s Peru during the dictatorship of Manuel A. Odria. Over beers and a sea of freely spoken words, the conversation flows between two individuals, Santiago and Ambrosia, who talk of their tormented lives and of the overall degradation and frustration that has slowly taken over their town. Through a complicated web of secrets and historical references, Mario Vargas Llosa analyzes the mental and moral mechanisms that govern power and the people behind it."--BOOK JACKET.

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