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Making Waves
Mario Vargas Llosa's lively mind alights in all kinds of places, both expected and unexpected: at the 1982 World Cup in Spain; on the Cuban revolution; in Berlin, where the son he meets at the airport has become a Rastafarian. But winding through this engaging collection is an exploration of something closer to the Peruvian novelist's (and one-time presidential contender's) core: his thoughts on the politics of literature and the literature of politics. In the United States, novelists aren't thought of in terms of their contribution to the national good; For Llosa, as for many Latin American writers, these acts most public (politics) and private (the writing of literature) are inextricably linked. "A writer," he says, "has no better way of serving his country than by writing with as much discipline and honesty as he can.... If he writes better in his country, he must stay there; if he writes better in exile, he must leave." And for those who think fiction is divorced from real life, think again: "A nation," writes Llosa, "is a political fiction imposed on a social and geographic reality almost always by force, for the benefit of a political minority."
338 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2002
26 people are currently reading
379 people want to read
About the author
Mario Vargas Llosa
535 books9,316 followersJorge Mario Pedro Vargas Llosa, 1st Marquess of Vargas Llosa, more commonly known as Mario Vargas Llosa, was a Peruvian novelist, journalist, essayist, and politician. Vargas Llosa was one of the Spanish language and Latin America's most significant novelists and essayists and one of the leading writers of his generation. Some critics consider him to have had a more substantial international impact and worldwide audience than any other writer of the Latin American Boom. In 2010, he won the Nobel Prize in Literature "for his cartography of structures of power and his trenchant images of the individual's resistance, revolt, and defeat".
Vargas Llosa rose to international fame in the 1960s with novels such as The Time of the Hero (La ciudad y los perros, 1963/1966), The Green House (La casa verde, 1965/1968), and the monumental Conversation in The Cathedral (Conversación en La Catedral, 1969/1975). He wrote prolifically across various literary genres, including literary criticism and journalism. His novels include comedies, murder mysteries, historical novels, and political thrillers. He won the 1967 Rómulo Gallegos Prize and the 1986 Prince of Asturias Award. Several of his works have been adopted as feature films, such as Captain Pantoja and the Special Service (1973/1978) and Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter (1977/1982). Vargas Llosa's perception of Peruvian society and his experiences as a native Peruvian influenced many of his works. Increasingly, he expanded his range and tackled themes from other parts of the world. In his essays, Vargas Llosa criticized nationalism in different parts of the world.
Like many Latin American writers, Vargas Llosa was politically active. While he initially supported the Cuban revolutionary government of Fidel Castro, Vargas Llosa later became disenchanted with its policies, particularly after the imprisonment of Cuban poet Heberto Padilla in 1971, and later identified as a liberal and held anti-left-wing ideas. He ran for the presidency of Peru in 1990 with the center-right Frente Democrático coalition, advocating for liberal reforms, but lost the election to Alberto Fujimori in a landslide.
Vargas Llosa continued his literary career while advocating for right-wing activists and candidates internationally following his exit from direct participation in Peruvian politics. He was awarded the 1994 Miguel de Cervantes Prize, the 1995 Jerusalem Prize, the 2010 Nobel Prize in Literature, the 2012 Carlos Fuentes International Prize, and the 2018 Pablo Neruda Order of Artistic and Cultural Merit. In 2011, Vargas Llosa was made the Marquess of Vargas Llosa by Spanish king Juan Carlos I. In 2021, he was elected to the Académie française.
Vargas Llosa rose to international fame in the 1960s with novels such as The Time of the Hero (La ciudad y los perros, 1963/1966), The Green House (La casa verde, 1965/1968), and the monumental Conversation in The Cathedral (Conversación en La Catedral, 1969/1975). He wrote prolifically across various literary genres, including literary criticism and journalism. His novels include comedies, murder mysteries, historical novels, and political thrillers. He won the 1967 Rómulo Gallegos Prize and the 1986 Prince of Asturias Award. Several of his works have been adopted as feature films, such as Captain Pantoja and the Special Service (1973/1978) and Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter (1977/1982). Vargas Llosa's perception of Peruvian society and his experiences as a native Peruvian influenced many of his works. Increasingly, he expanded his range and tackled themes from other parts of the world. In his essays, Vargas Llosa criticized nationalism in different parts of the world.
Like many Latin American writers, Vargas Llosa was politically active. While he initially supported the Cuban revolutionary government of Fidel Castro, Vargas Llosa later became disenchanted with its policies, particularly after the imprisonment of Cuban poet Heberto Padilla in 1971, and later identified as a liberal and held anti-left-wing ideas. He ran for the presidency of Peru in 1990 with the center-right Frente Democrático coalition, advocating for liberal reforms, but lost the election to Alberto Fujimori in a landslide.
Vargas Llosa continued his literary career while advocating for right-wing activists and candidates internationally following his exit from direct participation in Peruvian politics. He was awarded the 1994 Miguel de Cervantes Prize, the 1995 Jerusalem Prize, the 2010 Nobel Prize in Literature, the 2012 Carlos Fuentes International Prize, and the 2018 Pablo Neruda Order of Artistic and Cultural Merit. In 2011, Vargas Llosa was made the Marquess of Vargas Llosa by Spanish king Juan Carlos I. In 2021, he was elected to the Académie française.
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March 28, 2007
When ever I come to names such as “Llosa”, “Borges”, “Cortazar”, “Fuentes”... I wish I knew Spanish language, as I’m sure works by these authors would have a different aroma and melody in their own tongues. Llosa is, for me, one of the greatest story tellers, whose works give me deliciousness in Persian as well, (if it’s translated by Abdollah Kowsari, for example). Mario Bargas Llosa uses a highly sophisticated techniques with a very delicate language in multiple viewpoint, as if I’m listening to “Sare”, my childhood story tellers whom supposed to drown me in sleep, but was keeping me awake instead. Llosa takes you to a place, and while you get used to the situation, become a bit relax, he leaves you for another situation, another character in another place, force you to follow him as a sleepwalker, burning of curiosity, apprehension and restlessness, while he continue to make new situations with new chracters out of nothing, absolutely relax with a smile on his lips. He doesn’t explain the characters, but procreates them and leave them on your lap, and disappears…
بسیاری از آثار ماریو بارگاس یوسا به فارسی برگردانده شده. آنها که من دیده ام؛ "زندگی واقعی آلخاندرو مایتا" / حسن مرتضوی (ترجمه ی بدی نیست)، "سال های سگی" / احمد گلشیری (ترجمه ی خوبی ست)، "عصر قهرمان" / هوشنگ اسدی (ترجمه ی خوبی ست)، "مردی که حرف می زند"(قصه گو) / قاسم صنعوی، "موج آفرینی"/ مهدی غبرائی (ترجمه ی روانی ست)، "جنگ آخر زمان"/ عبدالله کوثری(ترجمه بسیار خوبی ست)، "گفتگو در کاتدرال"/ عبدالله کوثری (ترجمه ی شاهکاری ست) و... برخی از این آثار را ابتدا به فارسی خوانده ام، و دیگر آثار را برای بازخوانی به ترجمه ی آنها به فارسی رجوع کرده ام. تجربه نشان داده که حال و هوای ترجمه ی فارسی، بهررو با ترجمه به زبان های انگلیسی، فرانسه و دانمارکی متفاوت است. در خواندن آثار بارگاس یوسا، بورخس، سروانتس، فوئنتس، کورتازار... حسرت ندانستن زبان اسپانیولی در من بیدار می شود چرا که به خوبی حس می کنم این آثار به زبان اصلی موسیقی متفاوتی دارند. با این وجود، روایت های ماریو بارگاس یوسا بهر زبانی لذت بخش است. روایت های یوسا بوی "قصه گویی" می دهد. او عادت دارد از جایی به جای دیگر برود و همین که به صحنه ای عادت می کنی، یوسا به محل و شخصیتی دیگر می گریزد، در صندلی هنوز جا نیفتاده ای که تو را از جا بلند می کند و به صحنه ی دیگر می کشاند، روی صندلی سرد تازه ای بنشینی تا ادامه ی روایت یوسا دوباره گرمت کند. یوسا قصه گویی ست حرفه ای که گاه از هیچ، همه چیز می سازد. با یوسا بسیار جاهای ندیده را دیده ام؛ برزیل را، پرو را و... بسیار جاها که دیده ام؛ وین، رم، آمستردام را را به گونه ای دیگر تماشا کرده ام... در کوچه ها و خیابان ها و رستوران ها و قهوه خانه های بسیاری نشسته ام، گاه آنقدر نزدیک و آشنا که انگاری در همان خانه ای که یوسا وصف کرده. روایت یوسا زنده می شود و در جان می نشیند. وقتی رمانی از یوسا را شروع می کنی باید وقایع و شخصیت ها را در اولین صفحه ها به خاطر بسپاری و از نام و مشخصات هیچ کدامشان نگذری. شخصیت ها و موقعیت ها در همان فصل اول و دوم مثل رگباری فرو می ریزند، و در فصول بعدی آنها را عین پازلی کنار هم می نشاند و تابلوی بی نظیرش را می سازد. زبان شخصیت ها از یکی به دیگری، همراه با روحیه و کار و بار و زندگی شان، تغییر می کند. یوسا دستت را می گیرد و تو را با خود وارد قصه می کند، همین که درگیر فضا و آدم ها شدی، غیبش می زند، تنهایت می گذارد تا انتهای روایت همپای شخصیت ها به سفر ادامه دهی. از یک موقعیت به دیگری، به دفتری، رستورانی، خانه ای و بستری، با آدم هایی که در نهایت خشم و خشونت، به کودکانی معصوم می مانند. گاه نشسته ام و مدت ها به عکس یوسا نگاه کرده ام؛ این معصومیت لبخند یوساست که همه ی قصه هایش را پر کرده؟
بسیاری از آثار ماریو بارگاس یوسا به فارسی برگردانده شده. آنها که من دیده ام؛ "زندگی واقعی آلخاندرو مایتا" / حسن مرتضوی (ترجمه ی بدی نیست)، "سال های سگی" / احمد گلشیری (ترجمه ی خوبی ست)، "عصر قهرمان" / هوشنگ اسدی (ترجمه ی خوبی ست)، "مردی که حرف می زند"(قصه گو) / قاسم صنعوی، "موج آفرینی"/ مهدی غبرائی (ترجمه ی روانی ست)، "جنگ آخر زمان"/ عبدالله کوثری(ترجمه بسیار خوبی ست)، "گفتگو در کاتدرال"/ عبدالله کوثری (ترجمه ی شاهکاری ست) و... برخی از این آثار را ابتدا به فارسی خوانده ام، و دیگر آثار را برای بازخوانی به ترجمه ی آنها به فارسی رجوع کرده ام. تجربه نشان داده که حال و هوای ترجمه ی فارسی، بهررو با ترجمه به زبان های انگلیسی، فرانسه و دانمارکی متفاوت است. در خواندن آثار بارگاس یوسا، بورخس، سروانتس، فوئنتس، کورتازار... حسرت ندانستن زبان اسپانیولی در من بیدار می شود چرا که به خوبی حس می کنم این آثار به زبان اصلی موسیقی متفاوتی دارند. با این وجود، روایت های ماریو بارگاس یوسا بهر زبانی لذت بخش است. روایت های یوسا بوی "قصه گویی" می دهد. او عادت دارد از جایی به جای دیگر برود و همین که به صحنه ای عادت می کنی، یوسا به محل و شخصیتی دیگر می گریزد، در صندلی هنوز جا نیفتاده ای که تو را از جا بلند می کند و به صحنه ی دیگر می کشاند، روی صندلی سرد تازه ای بنشینی تا ادامه ی روایت یوسا دوباره گرمت کند. یوسا قصه گویی ست حرفه ای که گاه از هیچ، همه چیز می سازد. با یوسا بسیار جاهای ندیده را دیده ام؛ برزیل را، پرو را و... بسیار جاها که دیده ام؛ وین، رم، آمستردام را را به گونه ای دیگر تماشا کرده ام... در کوچه ها و خیابان ها و رستوران ها و قهوه خانه های بسیاری نشسته ام، گاه آنقدر نزدیک و آشنا که انگاری در همان خانه ای که یوسا وصف کرده. روایت یوسا زنده می شود و در جان می نشیند. وقتی رمانی از یوسا را شروع می کنی باید وقایع و شخصیت ها را در اولین صفحه ها به خاطر بسپاری و از نام و مشخصات هیچ کدامشان نگذری. شخصیت ها و موقعیت ها در همان فصل اول و دوم مثل رگباری فرو می ریزند، و در فصول بعدی آنها را عین پازلی کنار هم می نشاند و تابلوی بی نظیرش را می سازد. زبان شخصیت ها از یکی به دیگری، همراه با روحیه و کار و بار و زندگی شان، تغییر می کند. یوسا دستت را می گیرد و تو را با خود وارد قصه می کند، همین که درگیر فضا و آدم ها شدی، غیبش می زند، تنهایت می گذارد تا انتهای روایت همپای شخصیت ها به سفر ادامه دهی. از یک موقعیت به دیگری، به دفتری، رستورانی، خانه ای و بستری، با آدم هایی که در نهایت خشم و خشونت، به کودکانی معصوم می مانند. گاه نشسته ام و مدت ها به عکس یوسا نگاه کرده ام؛ این معصومیت لبخند یوساست که همه ی قصه هایش را پر کرده؟
July 8, 2024
Forty-six essays. A collection of essays is a good place to start with reading a great writer. The essay, Degenerate Art, just four and half pages, is phenomenal. Also the essays on Camus, Simone de Beauvoir, Sartre, and John Dos Passos.
January 19, 2024
I read this right after the author's essay collection, Sabers + Utopias, which covers half a century of Vargas Llosa's work on Latin American politics, up to ca. 1993. Making Waves overlaps considerably, adding literary and journalistic shorter pieces. I liked learning how the young writer's revolutionary ardor was chilled by Fidel Castro's approval of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. Why? This transformation illustrates Vargas Llosa's commitment to moral principles, rather than craven parroting of ideological cant. His insistence on elevating the rights of the individual, and.of freedom of thought and deed, represent a mature thinker, who examines his youthful ideals and finds them wanting, when betrayed by the party line.
In this anthology, pieces which came out in serial fashion, such as Maradona in the World Cup, or the Sendero Luminoso in his native Peru, show how events ripple across fact to inspire the imagination. While some pieces are inevitably dated, there's consistency in this intellect's attention to the necessity of the human and local, rather than the corporate and national, capabilities to flourish. Although I'm more sanguine about the positives of globalization than he is, at least before the.millennium, I agree that his cautionary attitude towards all forms of top-down management, whether religious, partisan, socialist, or reactionary, serves as a wise approach.
And, his laments that universities capitulate to groupthink and the literate of his continent prefer not to read, while (at least a few.decades ago?) most of the poor cannot read, gain all the more force a few decades later, when the medium by which I write this and you read it has upended traditional respect for a higher culture and a readership which cherishes the written word and the realm of print. It's a testament to the clarity of Vargas Llosa's long career in writing fact and fiction that he sets a high bar for us to meet, and respects an audience willing to seriously think.
In this anthology, pieces which came out in serial fashion, such as Maradona in the World Cup, or the Sendero Luminoso in his native Peru, show how events ripple across fact to inspire the imagination. While some pieces are inevitably dated, there's consistency in this intellect's attention to the necessity of the human and local, rather than the corporate and national, capabilities to flourish. Although I'm more sanguine about the positives of globalization than he is, at least before the.millennium, I agree that his cautionary attitude towards all forms of top-down management, whether religious, partisan, socialist, or reactionary, serves as a wise approach.
And, his laments that universities capitulate to groupthink and the literate of his continent prefer not to read, while (at least a few.decades ago?) most of the poor cannot read, gain all the more force a few decades later, when the medium by which I write this and you read it has upended traditional respect for a higher culture and a readership which cherishes the written word and the realm of print. It's a testament to the clarity of Vargas Llosa's long career in writing fact and fiction that he sets a high bar for us to meet, and respects an audience willing to seriously think.
July 7, 2013
When ever I come to names such as “Llosa”, “Borges”, “Cortazar”, “Fuentes”... I wish I knew Spanish language, as I’m sure works by these authors would have a different aroma and melody in their own tongues. Llosa is, for me, one of the greatest story tellers, whose works give me deliciousness in Persian as well, (if it’s translated by Abdollah Kowsari, for example). Mario Bargas Llosa uses a highly sophisticated techniques with a very delicate language in multiple viewpoint, as if I’m listening to “Sare”, my childhood story tellers whom supposed to drown me in sleep, but was keeping me awake instead. Llosa takes you to a place, and while you get used to the situation, become a bit relax, he leaves you for another situation, another character in another place, force you to follow him as a sleepwalker, burning of curiosity, apprehension and restlessness, while he continue to make new situations with new chracters out of nothing, absolutely relax with a smile on his lips. He doesn’t explain the characters, but procreates them and leave them on your lap, and disappears…
بسیاری از آثار ماریو بارگاس یوسا به فارسی برگردانده شده. آنها که من دیده ام؛ "زندگی واقعی آلخاندرو مایتا" / حسن مرتضوی (ترجمه ی بدی نیست)، "سال های سگی" / احمد گلشیری (ترجمه ی خوبی ست)، "عصر قهرمان" / هوشنگ اسدی (ترجمه ی خوبی ست)، "مردی که حرف می زند"(قصه گو) / قاسم صنعوی، "موج آفرینی"/ مهدی غبرائی (ترجمه ی روانی ست)، "جنگ آخر زمان"/ عبدالله کوثری(ترجمه بسیار خوبی ست)، "گفتگو در کاتدرال"/ عبدالله کوثری (ترجمه ی شاهکاری ست) و... برخی از این آثار را ابتدا به فارسی خوانده ام، و دیگر آثار را برای بازخوانی به ترجمه ی آنها به فارسی رجوع کرده ام. تجربه نشان داده که حال و هوای ترجمه ی فارسی، بهررو با ترجمه به زبان های انگلیسی، فرانسه و دانمارکی متفاوت است. در خواندن آثار بارگاس یوسا، بورخس، سروانتس، فوئنتس، کورتازار... حسرت ندانستن زبان اسپانیولی در من بیدار می شود چرا که به خوبی حس می کنم این آثار به زبان اصلی موسیقی متفاوتی دارند. با این وجود، روایت های ماریو بارگاس یوسا بهر زبانی لذت بخش است. روایت های یوسا بوی "قصه گویی" می دهد. او عادت دارد از جایی به جای دیگر برود و همین که به صحنه ای عادت می کنی، یوسا به محل و شخصیتی دیگر می گریزد، در صندلی هنوز جا نیفتاده ای که تو را از جا بلند می کند و به صحنه ی دیگر می کشاند، روی صندلی سرد تازه ای بنشینی تا ادامه ی روایت یوسا دوباره گرمت کند. یوسا قصه گویی ست حرفه ای که گاه از هیچ، همه چیز می سازد. با یوسا بسیار جاهای ندیده را دیده ام؛ برزیل را، پرو را و... بسیار جاها که دیده ام؛ وین، رم، آمستردام را را به گونه ای دیگر تماشا کرده ام... در کوچه ها و خیابان ها و رستوران ها و قهوه خانه های بسیاری نشسته ام، گاه آنقدر نزدیک و آشنا که انگاری در همان خانه ای که یوسا وصف کرده. روایت یوسا زنده می شود و در جان می نشیند. وقتی رمانی از یوسا را شروع می کنی باید وقایع و شخصیت ها را در اولین صفحه ها به خاطر بسپاری و از نام و مشخصات هیچ کدامشان نگذری. شخصیت ها و موقعیت ها در همان فصل اول و دوم مثل رگباری فرو می ریزند، و در فصول بعدی آنها را عین پازلی کنار هم می نشاند و تابلوی بی نظیرش را می سازد. زبان شخصیت ها از یکی به دیگری، همراه با روحیه و کار و بار و زندگی شان، تغییر می کند. یوسا دستت را می گیرد و تو را با خود وارد قصه می کند، همین که درگیر فضا و آدم ها شدی، غیبش می زند، تنهایت می گذارد تا انتهای روایت همپای شخصیت ها به سفر ادامه دهی. از یک موقعیت به دیگری، به دفتری، رستورانی، خانه ای و بستری، با آدم هایی که در نهایت خشم و خشونت، به کودکانی معصوم می مانند. گاه نشسته ام و مدت ها به عکس یوسا نگاه کرده ام؛ این معصومیت لبخند یوساست که همه ی قصه هایش را پر کرده؟
بسیاری از آثار ماریو بارگاس یوسا به فارسی برگردانده شده. آنها که من دیده ام؛ "زندگی واقعی آلخاندرو مایتا" / حسن مرتضوی (ترجمه ی بدی نیست)، "سال های سگی" / احمد گلشیری (ترجمه ی خوبی ست)، "عصر قهرمان" / هوشنگ اسدی (ترجمه ی خوبی ست)، "مردی که حرف می زند"(قصه گو) / قاسم صنعوی، "موج آفرینی"/ مهدی غبرائی (ترجمه ی روانی ست)، "جنگ آخر زمان"/ عبدالله کوثری(ترجمه بسیار خوبی ست)، "گفتگو در کاتدرال"/ عبدالله کوثری (ترجمه ی شاهکاری ست) و... برخی از این آثار را ابتدا به فارسی خوانده ام، و دیگر آثار را برای بازخوانی به ترجمه ی آنها به فارسی رجوع کرده ام. تجربه نشان داده که حال و هوای ترجمه ی فارسی، بهررو با ترجمه به زبان های انگلیسی، فرانسه و دانمارکی متفاوت است. در خواندن آثار بارگاس یوسا، بورخس، سروانتس، فوئنتس، کورتازار... حسرت ندانستن زبان اسپانیولی در من بیدار می شود چرا که به خوبی حس می کنم این آثار به زبان اصلی موسیقی متفاوتی دارند. با این وجود، روایت های ماریو بارگاس یوسا بهر زبانی لذت بخش است. روایت های یوسا بوی "قصه گویی" می دهد. او عادت دارد از جایی به جای دیگر برود و همین که به صحنه ای عادت می کنی، یوسا به محل و شخصیتی دیگر می گریزد، در صندلی هنوز جا نیفتاده ای که تو را از جا بلند می کند و به صحنه ی دیگر می کشاند، روی صندلی سرد تازه ای بنشینی تا ادامه ی روایت یوسا دوباره گرمت کند. یوسا قصه گویی ست حرفه ای که گاه از هیچ، همه چیز می سازد. با یوسا بسیار جاهای ندیده را دیده ام؛ برزیل را، پرو را و... بسیار جاها که دیده ام؛ وین، رم، آمستردام را را به گونه ای دیگر تماشا کرده ام... در کوچه ها و خیابان ها و رستوران ها و قهوه خانه های بسیاری نشسته ام، گاه آنقدر نزدیک و آشنا که انگاری در همان خانه ای که یوسا وصف کرده. روایت یوسا زنده می شود و در جان می نشیند. وقتی رمانی از یوسا را شروع می کنی باید وقایع و شخصیت ها را در اولین صفحه ها به خاطر بسپاری و از نام و مشخصات هیچ کدامشان نگذری. شخصیت ها و موقعیت ها در همان فصل اول و دوم مثل رگباری فرو می ریزند، و در فصول بعدی آنها را عین پازلی کنار هم می نشاند و تابلوی بی نظیرش را می سازد. زبان شخصیت ها از یکی به دیگری، همراه با روحیه و کار و بار و زندگی شان، تغییر می کند. یوسا دستت را می گیرد و تو را با خود وارد قصه می کند، همین که درگیر فضا و آدم ها شدی، غیبش می زند، تنهایت می گذارد تا انتهای روایت همپای شخصیت ها به سفر ادامه دهی. از یک موقعیت به دیگری، به دفتری، رستورانی، خانه ای و بستری، با آدم هایی که در نهایت خشم و خشونت، به کودکانی معصوم می مانند. گاه نشسته ام و مدت ها به عکس یوسا نگاه کرده ام؛ این معصومیت لبخند یوساست که همه ی قصه هایش را پر کرده؟
December 24, 2015
What an excellent and astute collection of essays from such topics as the "Bobbit affair" to Camus. The man is brilliant and a joy to read in the translation by John King. Originally published in 1996, it was released again after his win of the 2010 Nobel prize in literature.
The pinnacle of this book is "The Story of the Massacre" based on his work in a commission set up by the Peruvian government to understand what happened when seven journalists were killed in the Andes in 1983. Vargas Llosa gives a very well-rounded background leading up to the massacre when Sendero Luminoso (The Shining Path) army began its war against the Peruvian government. I don't even remember this event but it was a central issue in Peru at the time. His journalistic background unravels a good story and I was surprised by the ending.
Opposite to this is his story called "My Son the Rastafarian". This is a personal recollection of a visit by his son Gonzalo Gabriel while he sat on the jury of the Berlin Film Festival. The title sums up his 16-year old son. His observations, anxiety and grief of a teen boy reminded me of my own (to a much lesser degree). It was a good laugh and I'm sure Vargas Llosa didn't laugh at the time but does now.
Throughout these 46 essays, Vargas Llosa gives his view from a Latin American about literature (James Joyce, Hemmingway, Doris Lessing, Faulkner to name a view), politics, art, existentialism and soccer. If you enjoy his books, don't miss this collection of essays.
The pinnacle of this book is "The Story of the Massacre" based on his work in a commission set up by the Peruvian government to understand what happened when seven journalists were killed in the Andes in 1983. Vargas Llosa gives a very well-rounded background leading up to the massacre when Sendero Luminoso (The Shining Path) army began its war against the Peruvian government. I don't even remember this event but it was a central issue in Peru at the time. His journalistic background unravels a good story and I was surprised by the ending.
Opposite to this is his story called "My Son the Rastafarian". This is a personal recollection of a visit by his son Gonzalo Gabriel while he sat on the jury of the Berlin Film Festival. The title sums up his 16-year old son. His observations, anxiety and grief of a teen boy reminded me of my own (to a much lesser degree). It was a good laugh and I'm sure Vargas Llosa didn't laugh at the time but does now.
Throughout these 46 essays, Vargas Llosa gives his view from a Latin American about literature (James Joyce, Hemmingway, Doris Lessing, Faulkner to name a view), politics, art, existentialism and soccer. If you enjoy his books, don't miss this collection of essays.
February 24, 2025
I'm giving this book of thought-provoking essays 4 stars or a 4.5 just because it was at times hard for me to follow the complicated politics into which Vargas Llosa delves. That obviously impacted my ability to enjoy the book somewhat. But although that difficulty made a few of the essays a bit of a slog for me personally, the author explained other things fairly well for a reader like myself who is wholly unfamiliar with the history and politics of Latin America. Overall, this book reminded me yet again why Vargas Llosa is one of my favorite authors.
September 24, 2013
First time I read Vargas Llosa in English,and he sounds just as good as in Spanish; John King as made an amazing translation of some of the best essays by one the most accomplished and most provocative literary and philosophical figures in the world. Winner of the National Book Critics Circle, a New York Times Notable Book, and consider "One of the Best Books of the Year" by Publishers Weekly, "Making Waves" span thirty years of writing, from social criticism to contemporary literature,with each and every work reminds us that "literature is fire...a form of permanent insurrection." This book also includes one his best essays ever,"The Story of a Massacre", about the terrorism of Peru's Shining Path(Sendero Luminoso). An elegant,thoughtful, and wide-ranging book that shows the breadth of Vargas Llosa's interest and passions.
May 6, 2019
Socially, culturally and politically relevant. His writing makes a clear argument that there's value in literature and in revisiting icons of the past, lessons can be invaluable not only in its societal impact but in finding ones identity.
April 17, 2025
تحلیلهای فرهنگی و سیاسی شکفتآوری که هنوز تازه مینمایند.
January 6, 2018
Interestingly, I thought the essays got better the further from my political views Vargas Llosa became. The highlights were the pieces on the Shining Path and the Sandinistas, although they are more reportage than essays, perhaps. Llosa is probably correct in thinking South American revolutionaries' proneness to violence is a 'Latin' thing, and of course some of his observations on socialism are correct. However, like so many other converts from socialism, his view that the world works best when ran with 'common sense' is hopelessly naive. He never asks _whose_ common sense he is talking about and his apparent neutrality is betrayed by the fact that the brutalities of capitalism are never submitted to the same merciless scrutiny as socialist regimes and movements. Pity, as the essays get otherwise better with the years.
August 8, 2023
A collection of articles like this inevitably has certain strengths and weaknesses (wide variety of subjects vs reiteration of soundbyte-styled talking points), but for the most part i found this very interesting/readable. Coming away with a greater appreciation of Bataille/Joyce’s Dubliners as well. And i didnt read this version but the cover is fantastic.
March 18, 2019
His essays, though astute and varied, ultimately feel like listening to your elderly uncle talk after a couple glasses of wine. Stilted and slightly dismissive.
September 22, 2024
Some interesting aphoristic tidbits sprinkled throughout primarily centered on what it means to be an author
August 7, 2015
Admittedly, I have read none of Llosa's fiction. I have a novel of his sitting on my shelf, but I haven't gotten to it yet. But nonetheless I found this collection of essays tremendously interesting. The essay span the late '60s to the early '90s, and while not arranged strictly chronologically, the beginning of the collection has more from the '60s and the end of the book is predominantly from the '80s and '90s. In arranging the book in this way, the editor allows the reader to see Llosa's ideas transform and evolve over time, particularly his thoughts about the state and direction of Latin American governments, and more specifically his views on socialism. His affinity for socialism is obvious in the first few essays. But the reader quickly sees this change, especially in regards to Cuba and Fidel Castro. By the last few essays, Llosa villifies Castro. In his essay written on the 25th anniversary of Che Guevara's death in 1992, I thoroughly expected that he would have portrayed Che as the true representative of the Cuban Revolution, cast aside by the machinations of Castro's totalitarianism, a hero of the people, particularly of the poor. But Llosa surprised me. His acrimony extends to Che, calling him the "destroyer of democracies." In addition to all of this, there is a heavy dose of literary commentary. Llose explains his love of Faulker, his lessening admiration of Sartre, and his reconsideration of Camus...all writers that I greatly admire. And the final essay on the nature of fiction, the importance of fiction in a free society is sublime. I may have every student that I teach from now on read that essay. I'm very glad I read this book.
June 15, 2011
great essay by vargas llosa, we learn a lot about him, this is a great book for any fans of Vargas Llosa. highly recommended. if you have read any of his books and now you read making waves you will have a different perspective of his books
March 26, 2013
Brilliant, that is all I can say
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