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The Dancer Upstairs
The Peruvian guerilla leader Ezequiel is responsible for tens of thousands of fiendishly cruel murders, yet he consistently eludes capture. But in Agustn Rejas he has an indefatigable pursuer. From secluded city streets to the paths of a mountain village the policeman persists, tracking and anticipating Ezequiel's every move. Rejas' only reprieve is his love for his daughter's beautiful dance teacher--until he begins to pick up unmistakable signals that her circles--and Ezequiel's--intersect.
Based on the extraordinary manhunt for the leader of Peru's notorious guerilla organization, The Shining Path, The Dancer Upstairs is a story reminiscent of Graham Greene and John LeCarr -- tense, intricate, and heartbreaking.
Based on the extraordinary manhunt for the leader of Peru's notorious guerilla organization, The Shining Path, The Dancer Upstairs is a story reminiscent of Graham Greene and John LeCarr -- tense, intricate, and heartbreaking.
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
28 people are currently reading
562 people want to read
About the author
Nicholas Shakespeare
40 books114 followersNicholas William Richmond Shakespeare is a English novelist and biographer.
Born to a diplomat, Nicholas Shakespeare grew up in the Far East and in South America. He was educated at the Dragon School preparatory school in Oxford, then at Winchester College and at Magdalene College, Cambridge. He worked as a journalist for BBC television and then on The Times as assistant arts and literary editor. From 1988 to 1991 he was literary editor of The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph.
Since 2000, Shakespeare has been Patron of the Anita Goulden Trust, helping children in the Peruvian city of Piura. The UK-based charity was set up following an article that Shakespeare wrote for the Daily Telegraph magazine, which raised more than £350,000.
He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He is married with two small boys and currently lives in Oxford.
Born to a diplomat, Nicholas Shakespeare grew up in the Far East and in South America. He was educated at the Dragon School preparatory school in Oxford, then at Winchester College and at Magdalene College, Cambridge. He worked as a journalist for BBC television and then on The Times as assistant arts and literary editor. From 1988 to 1991 he was literary editor of The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph.
Since 2000, Shakespeare has been Patron of the Anita Goulden Trust, helping children in the Peruvian city of Piura. The UK-based charity was set up following an article that Shakespeare wrote for the Daily Telegraph magazine, which raised more than £350,000.
He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He is married with two small boys and currently lives in Oxford.
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January 25, 2026
SENDERO LUMINOSO
”The Dancer Upstairs – Danza di sangue” regia di John Malkovich, con Javier Bardem e Laura Morante, 2002. La sceneggiatura è firmata dallo stesso Nicholas Shakespeare.
Esiste cognome più impegnativo?
Mettersi a scrivere, tentare la carriera di scrittore con un cognome così è davvero una sfida.
Sembra che siano addirittura parenti, Nicholas sarebbe un discendente del bardo William.
Comunque, questo libro è buono, mi è proprio piaciuto, l'ho anche regalato ad amici.
Ambientazione e atmosfera dense, che rimangono, si ricordano.
Dopo questo libro, però, NS l'ho perso di vista, o è proprio sparito lui.
Qui si racconta di un poliziotto dotato di acume e sentimento che da la caccia a Ezequiel, nome di battaglia di Abimael Guzman, il leader del gruppo guerrigliero peruviano Sendero Luminoso, particolarmente attivo durante gli anni Ottanta. Rejas (Javier Bardem), il poliziotto, ha una figlia, che accompagna a lezione di danza: l’insegnante di danza è Yolanda (Laura Morante) e galeotta fu la salida…
Il film di John Malkovich, ottimo attore, dimostra per l’ennesima volta che non è necessario che tutti facciano i registi.
Soprattutto se non lo ordina il medico.
Lei è Laura Morante, bella e affascinante, non eccelsa, ma dignitosa; lui è Javier Bardem, a mio avviso, un grandissimo bluff, attore mediocre altamente sopravvalutato come già lo fu a suo tempo il connazionale Banderas (non basta lavorare con Almodovar per essere grandi attori, e neppure bravi - è lui che è un bravo regista e trasforma in oro il materiale umano che ha, per quanto scadente possa essere).
”The Dancer Upstairs – Danza di sangue” regia di John Malkovich, con Javier Bardem e Laura Morante, 2002. La sceneggiatura è firmata dallo stesso Nicholas Shakespeare.
Esiste cognome più impegnativo?
Mettersi a scrivere, tentare la carriera di scrittore con un cognome così è davvero una sfida.
Sembra che siano addirittura parenti, Nicholas sarebbe un discendente del bardo William.
Comunque, questo libro è buono, mi è proprio piaciuto, l'ho anche regalato ad amici.
Ambientazione e atmosfera dense, che rimangono, si ricordano.
Dopo questo libro, però, NS l'ho perso di vista, o è proprio sparito lui.
Qui si racconta di un poliziotto dotato di acume e sentimento che da la caccia a Ezequiel, nome di battaglia di Abimael Guzman, il leader del gruppo guerrigliero peruviano Sendero Luminoso, particolarmente attivo durante gli anni Ottanta. Rejas (Javier Bardem), il poliziotto, ha una figlia, che accompagna a lezione di danza: l’insegnante di danza è Yolanda (Laura Morante) e galeotta fu la salida…
Il film di John Malkovich, ottimo attore, dimostra per l’ennesima volta che non è necessario che tutti facciano i registi.
Soprattutto se non lo ordina il medico.
Lei è Laura Morante, bella e affascinante, non eccelsa, ma dignitosa; lui è Javier Bardem, a mio avviso, un grandissimo bluff, attore mediocre altamente sopravvalutato come già lo fu a suo tempo il connazionale Banderas (non basta lavorare con Almodovar per essere grandi attori, e neppure bravi - è lui che è un bravo regista e trasforma in oro il materiale umano che ha, per quanto scadente possa essere).
Read
May 16, 2015This book reminded me a lot of the parody Twitter account Guy in your MFA (https://twitter.com/GuyInYourMFA) because it really read like a privileged white guy had written it.
The main character is an journalist who goes to South America to basically trick his aunt into giving an interview about this guy she knew that was running for president.
While there he meets a guy in a coffee shop who turns out to be the president guys opponent and this new guy tells him all about catching this terrorist/revolutionary years ago. It's what I like to call a 'coffeeshop' book because its from the genre of 'old man tells long story in coffeeshop and at the end young person is changed forever'.
Mostly, the story he tells is not about the terrorist and more about this ballerina chick he almost banged and how much he hates his wife for being poor, or something. I kinda tuned in and out. Sort of like you do when an old person is telling a really long story.
But the ballerina was a HUGE Manic Pixie Dream Girl. She was basically just a male fantasy of a woman who is too young and dumb (and FULL of LIFE and DANCES in PARKS and COLORFUL STREAKS IN HAIR) to realize that you're old and gross.
The female characters in this book were all poorly written and the male characters were all assholes. Don't read this unless you are really into reading about horrifying third-world atrocities interspersed with endless adjectives used to describe nipples.
The main character is an journalist who goes to South America to basically trick his aunt into giving an interview about this guy she knew that was running for president.
While there he meets a guy in a coffee shop who turns out to be the president guys opponent and this new guy tells him all about catching this terrorist/revolutionary years ago. It's what I like to call a 'coffeeshop' book because its from the genre of 'old man tells long story in coffeeshop and at the end young person is changed forever'.
Mostly, the story he tells is not about the terrorist and more about this ballerina chick he almost banged and how much he hates his wife for being poor, or something. I kinda tuned in and out. Sort of like you do when an old person is telling a really long story.
But the ballerina was a HUGE Manic Pixie Dream Girl. She was basically just a male fantasy of a woman who is too young and dumb (and FULL of LIFE and DANCES in PARKS and COLORFUL STREAKS IN HAIR) to realize that you're old and gross.
The female characters in this book were all poorly written and the male characters were all assholes. Don't read this unless you are really into reading about horrifying third-world atrocities interspersed with endless adjectives used to describe nipples.
May 3, 2011
For years I thought Dancer Upstairs was either romance with some flavoring of political intrigue or a Tom Clancy thriller but the book thankfully has more in common with a Graham Greene novel. Dancer Upstairs features one of the clumsiest frame story ( a reporter randomly encountering the person he wishes to interview in a bar) , gives it a 19th century feel I guess which the author makes the mistake of returning to (thankfully briefly) and interrupting the story. The other story is gripping tense, sad story of an almost surreal terrorist campaign. This is the story of Rejas the investigator. This story plunges into the heart of darkness of a country (unnamed but based on Peru) in the grips of conflict, attacks and counterattacks, reprisal and counter reprisal, mob violence, and the army unleashing its own brand of terrorism under martial This also a portrait of a lonely man and a story of unrequited love.
January 4, 2015
I have had this book on my shelf for years, I had thought it was going to be something like Mao's Last Dancer. I had no idea of the plot. Interestingly I'd been discussing Bel Canto recently and then read The Dancer Upstairs and realizrd that the rebels in Bel Canto were most likely to have been based on the Shining Light revolutionaries depicted in this book.
It kept my attention the whole way, I found it well written and suspenseful, I'd recommend it to anyone with an interest in world events, history and a liking for a good story with intrigue.
It kept my attention the whole way, I found it well written and suspenseful, I'd recommend it to anyone with an interest in world events, history and a liking for a good story with intrigue.
February 11, 2011
Beautiful, painful, tragic and thought-provoking. One of the best books I've read in a long time.
October 3, 2009
Half the people we meet, we get wrong.
These words could describe the theme of Nicholas Shakespeare’s moody, stylish, and atmospheric political thriller, The Dancer Upstairs. Set in Latin America during "the recent past," Shakespeare doesn’t specifically name the country in which his novel takes place, although we know it’s Peru and we know The Dancer Upstairs is really a fictionalized account of the pursuit and capture, in September 1992, of Abimael Guzman, leader of Peru’s Shining Path.
The protagonist of The Dancer Upstairs is Augustin Rejas, an ex-lawyer-turned-policeman who is assigned the task of tracking down the elusive and enigmatic Ezequiel Duran, a former professor of philosophy and a man Rejas has met briefly in the past.
The mysterious Ezequiel now considers himself the "Fourth Flame of Communism," after Marx, Lenin and Mao. Whether or not Ezequiel truly is the "Fourth Flame of Communism" is really immaterial. What does matter is that Ezequiel is a terrorist, bent on inciting the people to riot and responsible for tens of thousands of deaths.
Ezequiel’s methods are bizarre and they add to the haunting imagery and mystery of this book. In the cities, Rejas sees dead dogs strung up on lampposts, explosives tied to their tails. Signs written in blood proclaim, "Long live President Ezequiel." But Ezequiel is not president. Multi-colored cockerels and parrots fly about with sticks of dynamite tied to their claws, and perhaps worst of all, small children engage in suicide missions, blowing themselves to smithereens even as they destroy homes, shops, and government buildings. It is Ezequiel, say the peasants, who is responsible for all of this death and destruction.
Ezequiel has exerted an almost hypnotic hold over the people; he exerts an almost hypnotic hold over Augustin Rejas. And, he exerts a definite hypnotic hold over the reader. In fact, Shakespeare seems to have taken a leaf from the pages of Conrad's Heart of Darkness, for Ezekiel is much like Kurtz...bizarre, isolated, and perhaps even mad. Stranger still, is the fact that Ezekiel makes no demands of either the citizens or the government. What he wants, and what he hopes to gain, are not clear.
While The Dancer Upstairs is, in part, the story of Rejas’ hunt for Ezequiel, Shakespeare also weaves another plot strand through the narrative of this book, this one a bittersweet tale of love.
Although Augustin Rejas is a married man, he’s not a happily married one. He and his wife, Sylvina are not a good match. Augustin is a deeper and more passionate person than is Sylvina, who becomes more and more obsessed with trivialities.
As Sylvina spends more and more time away from home, Augustin finds himself falling in love with his daughter, Laura’s, ballet instructor, the beautiful, passionate, and mysteriously unattached, Yolanda. Unlike Sylvina, Yolanda is deeply insightful and introspective. Also, at times, Yolanda seems to care for Augustin as much as Augustin cares for her, though both know their love is, for many reasons, doomed. And things become even more complicated when Augustin comes to the heartbreaking realization that Ezekiel’s path and Yolanda’s path intersect, time and time again.
The Dancer Upstairs is heavily infused with the torpor, the languidness, and the fatalism of the tropics. This was an aspect of the book that I liked extremely, but some readers might feel these atmospheric qualities slowed the novel’s pace a bit too much. And the book is slow. It also meanders in focus from Ezequiel to Yolanda, then back to Ezequiel again. I definitely feel that some readers, especially those liking fast paced thrillers, will find this book too languid, and also too stingy with details, too amorphous. The Dancer Upstairs is definitely a character-driven novel as opposed to a plot-driven one.
The ending is different in that there is a seemingly inconsistent turn of events. Some readers will see this turn of events coming long before it actually happens, while others will be totally surprised. To me, the ending, while still being consistent with all that came before, was a bit of a letdown, a bit anti-climactic. Shakespeare built us up for a huge payoff and what we get is a payoff that is, at best, mediocre. I didn’t want to be able to guess the ending of the novel, but sadly, I could.
Despite the fact that I didn’t find The Dancer Upstairs perfect, I thought it was very good, certainly far above average. The moody, atmospheric languor of the tropics had me hooked on the very first page and it never really let me go. And the fully realized character of Augustin Rejas was one I enjoyed spending time with, and one who, in the end, broke my heart.
P.S. The movie adaptation with Javier Bardem is, I think, wonderful. Don’t miss it.
These words could describe the theme of Nicholas Shakespeare’s moody, stylish, and atmospheric political thriller, The Dancer Upstairs. Set in Latin America during "the recent past," Shakespeare doesn’t specifically name the country in which his novel takes place, although we know it’s Peru and we know The Dancer Upstairs is really a fictionalized account of the pursuit and capture, in September 1992, of Abimael Guzman, leader of Peru’s Shining Path.
The protagonist of The Dancer Upstairs is Augustin Rejas, an ex-lawyer-turned-policeman who is assigned the task of tracking down the elusive and enigmatic Ezequiel Duran, a former professor of philosophy and a man Rejas has met briefly in the past.
The mysterious Ezequiel now considers himself the "Fourth Flame of Communism," after Marx, Lenin and Mao. Whether or not Ezequiel truly is the "Fourth Flame of Communism" is really immaterial. What does matter is that Ezequiel is a terrorist, bent on inciting the people to riot and responsible for tens of thousands of deaths.
Ezequiel’s methods are bizarre and they add to the haunting imagery and mystery of this book. In the cities, Rejas sees dead dogs strung up on lampposts, explosives tied to their tails. Signs written in blood proclaim, "Long live President Ezequiel." But Ezequiel is not president. Multi-colored cockerels and parrots fly about with sticks of dynamite tied to their claws, and perhaps worst of all, small children engage in suicide missions, blowing themselves to smithereens even as they destroy homes, shops, and government buildings. It is Ezequiel, say the peasants, who is responsible for all of this death and destruction.
Ezequiel has exerted an almost hypnotic hold over the people; he exerts an almost hypnotic hold over Augustin Rejas. And, he exerts a definite hypnotic hold over the reader. In fact, Shakespeare seems to have taken a leaf from the pages of Conrad's Heart of Darkness, for Ezekiel is much like Kurtz...bizarre, isolated, and perhaps even mad. Stranger still, is the fact that Ezekiel makes no demands of either the citizens or the government. What he wants, and what he hopes to gain, are not clear.
While The Dancer Upstairs is, in part, the story of Rejas’ hunt for Ezequiel, Shakespeare also weaves another plot strand through the narrative of this book, this one a bittersweet tale of love.
Although Augustin Rejas is a married man, he’s not a happily married one. He and his wife, Sylvina are not a good match. Augustin is a deeper and more passionate person than is Sylvina, who becomes more and more obsessed with trivialities.
As Sylvina spends more and more time away from home, Augustin finds himself falling in love with his daughter, Laura’s, ballet instructor, the beautiful, passionate, and mysteriously unattached, Yolanda. Unlike Sylvina, Yolanda is deeply insightful and introspective. Also, at times, Yolanda seems to care for Augustin as much as Augustin cares for her, though both know their love is, for many reasons, doomed. And things become even more complicated when Augustin comes to the heartbreaking realization that Ezekiel’s path and Yolanda’s path intersect, time and time again.
The Dancer Upstairs is heavily infused with the torpor, the languidness, and the fatalism of the tropics. This was an aspect of the book that I liked extremely, but some readers might feel these atmospheric qualities slowed the novel’s pace a bit too much. And the book is slow. It also meanders in focus from Ezequiel to Yolanda, then back to Ezequiel again. I definitely feel that some readers, especially those liking fast paced thrillers, will find this book too languid, and also too stingy with details, too amorphous. The Dancer Upstairs is definitely a character-driven novel as opposed to a plot-driven one.
The ending is different in that there is a seemingly inconsistent turn of events. Some readers will see this turn of events coming long before it actually happens, while others will be totally surprised. To me, the ending, while still being consistent with all that came before, was a bit of a letdown, a bit anti-climactic. Shakespeare built us up for a huge payoff and what we get is a payoff that is, at best, mediocre. I didn’t want to be able to guess the ending of the novel, but sadly, I could.
Despite the fact that I didn’t find The Dancer Upstairs perfect, I thought it was very good, certainly far above average. The moody, atmospheric languor of the tropics had me hooked on the very first page and it never really let me go. And the fully realized character of Augustin Rejas was one I enjoyed spending time with, and one who, in the end, broke my heart.
P.S. The movie adaptation with Javier Bardem is, I think, wonderful. Don’t miss it.
February 9, 2016
In "The Dancer Upstairs," author Nicholas Shakespeare poses questions both personal and universal in his telling of the tracking and capture of Ezequiel, a Peruvian revolutionary (modeled on the real Shining Path leader Abimael Guzman, who was eventually captured in September 1992). The essence of the book lies most strongly with the central dilemma: Can you ever really know someone?
The story is a retelling by the police colonel who tracked Ezequiel for more than twelve years. While the tale is completely fictional, Shakespeare does a yeoman's duty in bringing to life the atmosphere of a country in terror. Through his writing, readers come to feel what it's like to fear the unknown around every corner, to be lying in wait for the next horrible thing to occur.
In the story, as police colonel Agustin Rejas follows the clues and as he gets closer to the terrorist, he also begins to feel how the reign of terror has intersected in a very personal way with his own life, from a massacre in his own home village near the Amazon to the connection with his own romantic feelings toward his daughter's ballet teacher (the "dancer" of "The Dancer Upstairs").
Rejas has agreed to tell his tale to journalist John Dyer, whose employer (a British newspaper) has recently decided to close the South American bureau at which he works, citing a lack of interest on the part of the rest of the world. Peru is alone with its problems. Making the situation worse is the government's attempt to take action, wielding a heavy-handed response by the military, whom the people see as little better (and perhaps even worse, in some cases) than the revolutionary group they are fighting.
Author Nicholas Shakespeare's writing is strong, and his tale unnerving. Living in the grips of daily blackouts, car bombs, and the brutal savagery of symbolic killings with their political messages, the author makes us feel the terror of a society on the edge of collapse. The experience of the ordinary citizen is shown here through Rejas's family life and their extended social network.
Some ignore the terror, trying to live out their lives as normally as possible. Some flee the country. Some believe that the terror can't touch them. In the end, the terrorists and their victims are nearly interchangeable, as shown so symbolically in the portraits at the dance theater near the end of the story.
What gives the book life and its power are the realistic portraits Shakespeare draws of his main characters. The Maoist revolutionary Ezequiel is plagued with a skin disease (whose signposts eventually lead to his capture), his revolutionaries are the sons and daughters of farmers and the middle class whose lives have been ruined by the government, the police are compromised and tainted. In the end, no one's hands are clean. Despite the best of intentions, the revolution and the government seeking to stop it are both guilty of heinous acts in the name of their cause. "The Dancer Upstairs" is not an easy book to read, but it's an important one as long as terrorism exists.
The story is a retelling by the police colonel who tracked Ezequiel for more than twelve years. While the tale is completely fictional, Shakespeare does a yeoman's duty in bringing to life the atmosphere of a country in terror. Through his writing, readers come to feel what it's like to fear the unknown around every corner, to be lying in wait for the next horrible thing to occur.
In the story, as police colonel Agustin Rejas follows the clues and as he gets closer to the terrorist, he also begins to feel how the reign of terror has intersected in a very personal way with his own life, from a massacre in his own home village near the Amazon to the connection with his own romantic feelings toward his daughter's ballet teacher (the "dancer" of "The Dancer Upstairs").
Rejas has agreed to tell his tale to journalist John Dyer, whose employer (a British newspaper) has recently decided to close the South American bureau at which he works, citing a lack of interest on the part of the rest of the world. Peru is alone with its problems. Making the situation worse is the government's attempt to take action, wielding a heavy-handed response by the military, whom the people see as little better (and perhaps even worse, in some cases) than the revolutionary group they are fighting.
Author Nicholas Shakespeare's writing is strong, and his tale unnerving. Living in the grips of daily blackouts, car bombs, and the brutal savagery of symbolic killings with their political messages, the author makes us feel the terror of a society on the edge of collapse. The experience of the ordinary citizen is shown here through Rejas's family life and their extended social network.
Some ignore the terror, trying to live out their lives as normally as possible. Some flee the country. Some believe that the terror can't touch them. In the end, the terrorists and their victims are nearly interchangeable, as shown so symbolically in the portraits at the dance theater near the end of the story.
What gives the book life and its power are the realistic portraits Shakespeare draws of his main characters. The Maoist revolutionary Ezequiel is plagued with a skin disease (whose signposts eventually lead to his capture), his revolutionaries are the sons and daughters of farmers and the middle class whose lives have been ruined by the government, the police are compromised and tainted. In the end, no one's hands are clean. Despite the best of intentions, the revolution and the government seeking to stop it are both guilty of heinous acts in the name of their cause. "The Dancer Upstairs" is not an easy book to read, but it's an important one as long as terrorism exists.
November 27, 2013
I think being in Peru and being able to picture the scenes in this book as I read definitely added to my enjoyment of this in a big way. The writing style is a touch quirky, it can be a bit disorienting and hard to pick who is narrating sometimes, not all bad but just keeps you on your toes. An interesting story, fictionalised history of the capture of the leader of Shining Path. The end came with a bit of a clunk, I would have liked a bit more of a wrap up.
August 6, 2017
Dyer is a journalist trying to get a story with higher ranking Peruvian officials. His aunt has connections, but won't use them. It doesn't really matter because he ends up talking with a policeman, Rejas, heavily involved in trying to capture a cruel political leader. In the course of Rejas' story, we learn of Yolanda, his daughter's dance teacher, and his increasing obsession with her.
October 26, 2012
Great book. Very well written. Good suspense.
May 13, 2015
Overall a fairly good story. The writing was vague in places. You're reading along, and suddenly, you're thinking, "what? Where are we? What happened?"
April 19, 2020
I loved the movie and wasn't disappointed by the book, great novel on the hunt for the Shinning Path leader.
August 29, 2021
I received "The Dancer Upstairs" as part of a gift subscription to Heywood Hill (6 novels over a year) from my daughter. You fill in a form about what you like, and they mail you the books. So far they have been excellent - I'm about to start my third.
"The Dancer Upstairs" is an elegant, elegiac tale about a police officer's struggle to apprehend a terrorist in a Latin American country that might be Brazil, although it is never stated clearly. The narrator, a jaundiced British journalist, encounters the police officer and listens to his story. Three things stand out:
- the tone of the book is beautiful. The prose is pitch-perfect;
- the characters are deep and richly developed. You find yourself struggling to remember this is fiction;
- the setting is exotic and intriguing.
By the standards of thrillers, "The Dancer Upstairs" has relatively few moments of tension. But it made up for this in its beautiful rhythm and readability. Clear five stars.
"The Dancer Upstairs" is an elegant, elegiac tale about a police officer's struggle to apprehend a terrorist in a Latin American country that might be Brazil, although it is never stated clearly. The narrator, a jaundiced British journalist, encounters the police officer and listens to his story. Three things stand out:
- the tone of the book is beautiful. The prose is pitch-perfect;
- the characters are deep and richly developed. You find yourself struggling to remember this is fiction;
- the setting is exotic and intriguing.
By the standards of thrillers, "The Dancer Upstairs" has relatively few moments of tension. But it made up for this in its beautiful rhythm and readability. Clear five stars.
February 27, 2025
Beautifully written, this story follows a police captain in Peru who is hunting the leader of a terrorist group. A brooding sense of threat pervades the book and the final portrait of the leader – in spite of him having inspired dreadful slaughter – is strangely sympathetic. Nicholas draws on his real-life experience in South America, and his ability to create atmosphere and suspense is masterful.
July 9, 2020
Such an incredible read! Long time since I have read a book that have left me feeling like that.
July 9, 2020
Loved it, great thriller and couldn't put it down as i got toward the last half of the book. I like the 'prequel' to this but found this book a step up from that.
March 27, 2008
The Dancer Upstairs by Nicholas Shakespeare
What happens when you read a book, love a book, think it is wonderful but have real difficulty recommending it? Well, you have probably just read The Dancer Upstairs.
The author has taken a true story about Abimael Guzmán (and for those of you who have never heard about Guzmán [that would include me 24 hours ago] you really should read about him) and turned it into a work of fiction - all the names have been changed to protect the innocent guilty.
It is about one man's search for the leader of a revolution, a revolution to overthrow the Peruvian government. It is also a love story (although it is unrequited love) and a story about politics. And that makes it sound fairly boring but it isn't.
I enjoyed the book because I am, at the moment, trying to get a mind-set on the way Mexicans think. This book is actually set in Perú which is, of course, South America rather than being North American. However many of the stories told about Peruvian costumes help to understand some of the stories Maria has told me about Ancient Mexico. She has told me of two tribes who would fight every year with the express purpose of taking 100 prisoners from each tribe. These prisoners would then be sacrificed to Mother Nature so that the rains would come. When she told me this I stored the idea in the back of my mind thinking - ah, ancient times. In The Dancer Upstairs the police officer recounts the time as a child (so mid 1900s) when two villages would go to up the mountains and have a snowball fight until one child fell down a precipice and died. This would happen every year and no-one talked about it.
From a personal point of view I would give this book 5 stars, I found the book exceptionally well written, well paced and totally involving. However I would probably not recommend it to anyone unless they have an unlimited budget and endless time to read books. If you have it on your shelf, pick it up now and read it. If you come across it at a car-boot sale, pick it up and put it on your shelf for a rainy day.
June 16, 2020
Πολύ καλό. Κρίμα να που δεν είναι πολύ γνωστό, ομως, μέσα από μια επινοημένη ιστορία, δίνει την εικόνα της Λατινικής Αμερικής και δείχνει τον ρόλο όσων ενεπλάκησαν στην ιστορία της.
June 2, 2016
Underwhelming. I love the movie, seen it many times. I discover a lot of books that way, by loving a movie. Unlike most book lovers, I don't buy into the myth that the book is "always" better. Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't. In this case, the movie was better.
What a story! Now that I know the author was inspired by a true story, about the manhunt for the "Shining Path" revolutionaries, now I'm interested in that true crime story. We always think of "revolution" as a positive thing, especially in America. But we forget that revolution and terrorism are the same thing, two words describing the same events from conflicting viewpoints. When a revolutionary slits a politician's throat, is that a beautiful sunrise of new ideas, or coldblooded murder? To tell the story of a failed revolution from the point of view of the cop hunting them down puts this question in perspective. To constantly reinforce the corruption of the government he's supposedly protecting adds a layer of complexity to the story. Is he loyal to his crooked superiors? Could the revolutionaries be right? Or does he merely abhor violence?
Sadly, this is a profoundly moving and original story, told in flat, ordinary language. It is very seductive and compelling, especially towards the end, but with no sense of flair or lyrical style. Perhaps some are attracted to that kind of unpretentious terse language. For me, the movie captured what the author didn't, that deep emotional component between the words, and I have to just leave it there.
What a story! Now that I know the author was inspired by a true story, about the manhunt for the "Shining Path" revolutionaries, now I'm interested in that true crime story. We always think of "revolution" as a positive thing, especially in America. But we forget that revolution and terrorism are the same thing, two words describing the same events from conflicting viewpoints. When a revolutionary slits a politician's throat, is that a beautiful sunrise of new ideas, or coldblooded murder? To tell the story of a failed revolution from the point of view of the cop hunting them down puts this question in perspective. To constantly reinforce the corruption of the government he's supposedly protecting adds a layer of complexity to the story. Is he loyal to his crooked superiors? Could the revolutionaries be right? Or does he merely abhor violence?
Sadly, this is a profoundly moving and original story, told in flat, ordinary language. It is very seductive and compelling, especially towards the end, but with no sense of flair or lyrical style. Perhaps some are attracted to that kind of unpretentious terse language. For me, the movie captured what the author didn't, that deep emotional component between the words, and I have to just leave it there.
June 7, 2020
A fantastic page turner which is absolutely compelling.
Combines the themes of corruption, family, love and communist rebellion to create a great narrative with vivid characters that are relatable.
Rejas, the police pursuer of Ezequil who had missed payments from the state for his work but continues to search for him in amongst the debris of a broken society on which atrocities on both sides are committed in the guerrilla warfare. The blackouts and portrait of the city and country under strain are imaginative but so real.
Alongside this is the almost mystical figure of the dance teacher, Yolanda, who Rejas falls in love with even though they barely know each other.
These elements come together to create a brilliant, thrilling book which I can highly recommend.
Combines the themes of corruption, family, love and communist rebellion to create a great narrative with vivid characters that are relatable.
Rejas, the police pursuer of Ezequil who had missed payments from the state for his work but continues to search for him in amongst the debris of a broken society on which atrocities on both sides are committed in the guerrilla warfare. The blackouts and portrait of the city and country under strain are imaginative but so real.
Alongside this is the almost mystical figure of the dance teacher, Yolanda, who Rejas falls in love with even though they barely know each other.
These elements come together to create a brilliant, thrilling book which I can highly recommend.
Read
July 30, 2011After seeing the Bardem movie, I had to go back and read the book it was based on. In Peru in the nineties they police captured a notorious university professor, Ezequiel, who had incited thousands of terrorist acts, which in turn had caused a maelstrom of police retaliation. The book is loosely based on the 12-year hunt by a police colonel for the leftist leader. As in the movie, Rejas falls in love with his daugher's dance teacher. There is more information about his trip to his village, and the aftermath of a police retaliation there. The author, who has lived in Latin America, has a nuanced view of the nineties in a country loosely based on Peru. There is a lot of violence, sexual tension, and politics, everything in place for a gripping account. The slowness of the narrative builds up to the bittersweet conclusion of the hunt. We know that Rejas captures Ezequiel, but how does it happen? Does he sleep with Yolanda? Read it and see!
December 4, 2015
This book won me over in the end. There is a quiet drama that keeps building, and not in the way you completely expect, or at least I expected. It's a dry and cool book, which kept making me want to pick up a Graham Green. But because this book is a quiet achiever that thought did disappear. Yes, I did not totally buy the love story, which is a huge part of the book. But the story of the society that is dominate by army rule and chaotic terrorism and how relationships of couples and communities are effected by this is incredibly interesting and compelling.
I could easily imagine this book as a stage play, not because it is talkie - even though it is a narrative being told to another character it is surprising un-talkie - but because most of it is about performance and facade.
This is the kind of book I would read again just to see if my perception of the end changes the rest of the book. And its not like massive twist just a slow change of appreciation.
I could easily imagine this book as a stage play, not because it is talkie - even though it is a narrative being told to another character it is surprising un-talkie - but because most of it is about performance and facade.
This is the kind of book I would read again just to see if my perception of the end changes the rest of the book. And its not like massive twist just a slow change of appreciation.
May 23, 2020
Really enjoyed it - was initially a little thrown because I'm not used to reading thrillers in general, but Shakespeare's style captures a lot of nuance and along with politics and action, possesses a wiry and erudite kind of poetry. This is an Englishman who is writing South America, so there is probably a lot of interesting stuff I have missed - but it was a cracking read touching a lot of different notes. Inspired to read more of his writing and also latin american writing, which must be being refracted through his writerly Englishman's gaze. The movie was directed by John Malkovich, with Javier Bardem, and the reviews suggest it translates the book well - worth a squiz!
February 8, 2009
A riveting story told by Colonel Augustin Rejas to a foreign correspondent, John Dyer, of his investigation and capture of a Peruvian guerrilla leader.
Dyer was pursuing a different man for an interview when by chance, he met Colonel Rejas. Just like Dyer, I was completely sucked in by the story Rejas was relating. It's not just about the criminal actions of both the government and the guerrilas, the violence committed against the people, but also about the people themselves; about culture, humanity, and love.
Fascinating story, I'd like to see if the movie is just as good...
Dyer was pursuing a different man for an interview when by chance, he met Colonel Rejas. Just like Dyer, I was completely sucked in by the story Rejas was relating. It's not just about the criminal actions of both the government and the guerrilas, the violence committed against the people, but also about the people themselves; about culture, humanity, and love.
Fascinating story, I'd like to see if the movie is just as good...
January 23, 2010
I originally became interested in reading this book after seeing the international film by the same title. John Malkovich reportedly was very vested in the project and wanted to bring this story to film and I wanted to understand why. The story is slow at times and often difficult to follow but it is based upon real events in South America so I stayed with it to the end. Parts of the tale are disturbing with the violence portrayed, and probably more so because, again, it is based upon real events.
September 8, 2019
Based on a horrific period in recent Peruvian history, this book not only gives the reader a sense of what life was like for people in various parts of Peru and at different social levels during guerilla warfare, but also brings to life both main and secondary characters. The stories take place in a country in South America - Peru is not specifically mentioned. It's not necessary to have knowledge of or interest in Peru's history to enjoy and appreciate this novel, but it's hard not to do a bit of "googling" after reading to find out whether some of the horrors described really happened.
March 19, 2013
I read a lot of "movie books", meaning both about movies and books that have been turned into them. I think it's fun. Most of the books that have been turned into movies are good or just better than the movie. This was definitely the case with the book "Sphere". What a horrible excuse for a movie. But this book is good. But for some reason, I suggest to watch the movie first in this case and then read the book. They're so different. And great in their own language.
September 9, 2010
Zips along nicely - very readable and interesting, although the ending will leave no-one surprised. Bought it with the impression that it was actually historical rather than an approximation, so I was a little disappointed there, but that's just my poor research. Overall, a quick read that is worth your time, I just wish it had been a dramatisation of actual events so that I could have felt that I'd learnt something.
December 7, 2012
I feel sorry for anyone who starts reading this book thinking it will really be about dance. You need strong nerves for this very graphic knowledge regarding the violence of a revolutionary movement in South America. The major story is gripping, but the secondary story, about a journalist, is unnecessary.
January 20, 2013
"'A beautifully crafted tale of love, obsession, and terror' is the story of an extensive manhunt of a Peruvian guerilla leader and the cop whose mission it was to find him, through the eyes of a reporter looking for a story. I liked it but maybe didn't love it. It has interesting parallels, twists, and characters."
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