This is an excellent satirical romp that truly captivates the reader.

The story is filled with a diverse cast of engaging characters, each with their own unique personalities and quirks.

From the bumbling protagonist to the conniving antagonists, every character adds depth and interest to the narrative.

The author's writing style is sharp and witty, making the story both entertaining and thought-provoking.

I found myself laughing out loud at some of the humorous situations and clever dialogues.

Overall, this is a great read that I would highly recommend to anyone looking for a fun and engaging satire.

I will definitely be reading more from this talented author in the future.

This book had such an impact on me that it made me eager to listen to vallenatos non-stop for a week. Simultaneously, I was furiously googling to find out if it's safe for a relatively healthy, kind of middle-aged young woman, who doesn't know how to drive, to embark on a solo travel to Colombia.

Putting that aside, it's crucial to remember that this is not Gabriel García Marquéz. Once you get past that thought, you'll discover a plethora of heartbreak, hilarity, and eeky moments in (respectably) equal measures. Many of the negative reviews here gripe that we didn't truly get to care about any of the characters because too many were introduced simultaneously - but that's just pish posh. There are two more books in the series, and if you don't care at least about the original villagers by the end of this one, you've read it too quickly.

One criticism I have is that there was absolutely no valid reason, none at all, for the author to use the word'micturition' instead of 'urination' as frequently as he did. This indicates that the language he employs is often extremely ornamental. At times, this added to the comedy, but at other moments, it was simply a nuisance.

What an uneven book.... I started reading it with great interest and as I progressed, the interest turned into enthusiasm. I had read the excellent "Rouge" last year and although the author of "Don Emmanuel" is English, he wrote like a Latino American and I believed that I would read a similar story. Many well-designed characters, a very interesting case, excellent development, multi-layered growth, humor. A high-level socio-political analysis (which is inevitable when we talk about a Latino American country). All of these given in a realistic way that continuously maintained unwavering interest.

From the middle and onwards, the snakes started to bother me. Inconsistencies, discontinuities, easiness. Don Emmanuel, who gives the title to the book, ultimately plays a very small role, and the development becomes more and more surreal without the author having prepared us for absurdity. When the donkeys started giving birth to kittens, the kittens became jaguars, and the, for 400 years, dead started rising, e, there I gave up. I'm not for this kind of thing. Magic realism? I don't know. If that was the intention, then I think a real Latino American author is needed.

In a remarkable display of historical compromise, we are introduced to the recent past of a country where, astonishingly, "democracy was restored by the abolition of elections."

It's important to note that this is the first installment of the author's South American trilogy. At the time, I didn't realize this, but it doesn't matter much as the novels are standalone and can be read in any order. The title is a bit misleading as it has little to do with war. Instead, it's a unique blend of political satire and a touch of magic.

The story unfolds in a secluded community within an unnamed South American Andean nation ruled by a corrupt oligarchy and fascist military officers. Trouble starts when Dona Constanza Evans, an aristocratic wife of a wealthy landowner and descendant of a Welsh speculator, decides to divert the local river to supply water for her private swimming pool. Astonished by this, the local villagers turn to Don Emmanuel, another rich landowner whose property is downstream and would be negatively affected if the scheme proceeds, especially since he likes to bathe his "nether parts" in the river, to try and persuade her otherwise.

When diplomacy fails, Don Emmanuel and the villagers resort to sabotaging her plan. This, in turn, has the unintended consequence of bringing both government soldiers and communist guerrillas to the scene to investigate, until the villagers force the army to return to their base. Meanwhile, back in the capital, the president and a corrupt group of military officers are vying for control.

The author skillfully weaves together a series of almost cartoonish incidents involving the army with rather graphic depictions of torture carried out by the army, an inept and divided guerrilla movement, some steamy sex scenes, tales of romance, witty political satire, and elements of the supernatural.

There is a plethora of characters, which can be a bit overwhelming and confusing at first, but if you persevere, they tend to sort themselves out in the end. These characters generally fall into certain categories: clever peasants, wise whores, arrogant dames transformed by love, and inept officials.

Although the country in the novel is unnamed, many readers and no doubt academics will conclude that it is based on Colombia, a nation that has endured numerous civil wars over the years, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of its inhabitants. Given this and the grim nature of the author's political satire, the ending, where the villagers establish a new Utopian civilization in a ruined Inca city, may seem a little too optimistic to withstand close scrutiny. However, this should not detract from the fact that, in my humble opinion, this is a beautifully written piece of work that left me with a constant grin on my face, if not laughing out loud. Surely, that's no small feat.

Another vivid and colourful journey through all the diverse sections of a fictional Latin-American society awaits.

The writing is highly entertaining, filled with moments of great wit and charm. It bounces around from one situation to another like a hyperactive grasshopper with ADHD, keeping the reader on their toes and engaged.

However, there is a downside. At times, the author can be distressingly casual when dealing with some rather sordid events. This lack of solemnity or depth in handling such topics can leave the reader feeling a bit uncomfortable or disappointed.

Overall, while the book has its entertaining and engaging aspects, the casual treatment of certain sordid events detracts somewhat from its overall impact. It makes one wonder if a more serious and thoughtful approach could have been taken to truly do justice to the complex and often troubled society that is being depicted.

There are an overwhelming number of characters and events in this story, making it nearly impossible to provide a comprehensive and sensible summary. However, I'll do my best. We find ourselves in an imagined South American country, embroiled in an unending conflict between the government, the military, and the guerilleros, many of whom are communist. The civilians, unfortunately, bear the brunt of the consequences. Despite the extremely violent and gory nature of the book, with rape, murder, torture, kidnapping, gun and machete battles, and coups, it is surprisingly hilarious and fun to read, never feeling remotely tragic. There are also elements of magic, such as the plague of cats, ancient soldiers coming to life, the magical healing of Francoise's cancer, and the President's obsession with alchemy. Additionally, there are nuggets of tongue-in-cheek philosophy scattered throughout the text.

A few pages in, I decided to stop trying to keep perfect track of all the characters and simply let the story carry me along. For the most part, I was able to keep everyone straight, and regardless, this book is an enjoyable romp. It is hilarious, absurd in a meaningful way, disgusting, violent, and horrific, yet manages to avoid being tragic. It is truly brilliant.

I particularly loved the discussion of patriotism towards the beginning of the book. There are two types of patriots: the first believes that their country is superior to all others and is never wrong, so the best course of action is to dominate. The second type sees the faults in their country but loves it anyway and works to correct those faults. The first kind of patriot revels in their own irrationality, while the second glories in their homeland.

My favorite parts were the sprinklings of semi-universal wisdom throughout the book. This is where the author's playful voice truly shines. Some examples include: "They are a people who have learned by their own blood the wondrous disadvantages of an eventful history." "Life is nothing if not a random motion of coincidences and quirks of chance; it never goes as planned or as foretold; frequently one gains happiness from being obliged to follow an unchosen path or misery from following a chosen one." "A general rule that applies to all humankind... people always think that if they are very expert at something, that thing must therefore be extremely important." "Old friends shook hands and people who had never talked in the past exchanged confidences. Such things are caused not by fear but by the revelation that there is nothing stable in the whole universe and that everything is finally a matter of chance, which can so suddenly throw the lives of people into chaos." "The truth is that the mountains are a place where you can find whatever you want just by looking, as long as you remember that they do not suffer fools gladly and particularly dislike those with preconceived ideas." "There is nothing at all wrong with our laws and institutions and our constitution, which are all democratic and enlightened. What is wrong is that they are enforced by people who do not consider themselves bound by them."

Themes explored in this book include South America, politics, humor, magical realism, a large cast of characters, war, and race.

I couldn't help but explore the early works of an author who shone like a comet into my reading enjoyment with his charming and thrilling "Captain Corelli's Mandolin" (1994) and "Birds Without Wings" (2004). The former delved into a Greek island community invaded by Italians during World War 2, while the latter painted a picture of a multicultural community in Anatolia shaken by the death throes of the Ottoman Empire and World War 1.

Here, our cast of characters is from a village in an unnamed South American country, ranging from peasants of native, black, or mixed races to wealthy immigrants, socialites, corporate oligarchs, and army members of various ranks. The former strive towards revolution against the oppression and exploitation of the latter. Fortunately, there is some real character development and a touch of a fairy tale as people from all walks of life end up working towards some utopian freedom by the end.

Some of the main characters include Don Emanuel, a wealthy landowner turned playboy and hippie, Dona Constanza Evans, the haughty but lusty wife of an oligarch, Aurelio, an orphan from ranching peons who is empowered by a Native tribe in the rainforest, and Remedios, a female guerilla leader with a chip on her shoulder after her parents were tortured to death as a girl. All these characters are pushed to change their ways after an atrocity committed by Sergeant Figueros, starting with an attempted rape of a beloved village girl and escalating to a hand-grenade assault on a crowd.

The rebel forces hiding in the mountains begin to gain more strength and become bold enough to kidnap first Dona Constanza and then General Fuertas, who is high in the government's military command. It turns out that Constanza likes the look of one young rebel, and the general is sympathetic to the group's despair over the corruption and brutality of soldiers like Figueros, which he was not aware of. The collective discovers less brutal ways of fighting back against the government, such as placing poisonous spiders in tents, releasing caimen at night, and staging fake ghost hauntings, and they grow their hope for autonomy in a remote place beyond the reach of the government.

This plot schema might not seem to leave much room for satire and humor. However, much of it lies in the dialogue among his well-crafted characters and the constant clash of world views. The whole society is in a pitiful situation, suffering from civil wars that have killed nearly 200,000 people, with little change in the situation as Liberal and Conservative politicians change administrations every few years without touching the power of corrupt and greedy business leaders and their control over the military. This picture seems close to the reality of many countries in South America.

The absurd, yet realistic, element of this scenario involves the self-defeating factionalism among the socialists and communists and their inability to translate their affinity with the oppressed masses into coherent action. The People's Liberation Force, for example, is mainly a demolition group, choosing this specialty because it is one of the safest. They fail to see that destroying the infrastructure built for the benefit of the masses does not alleviate their plight.

Some of the humor comes from a type of hyperbole that reminds me of Terry Pratchett in his Discworld series. The description of the brutality and inhumanity during the times is exaggerated to the point of absurdity, yet it also reflects the reality. The insidious role of the Americans in supporting repressive puppet regimes is also criticized, as their military training extends to the secret police, which includes torture.

Don Emanuel, based on his past military experience, advises the rebel band that has adopted him and Dona Constanza not to kill Americans. He believes that they are fanatical but mostly decent men, and their presence can prevent the army from committing atrocities. From the bits on de Bernieres in Wikipedia, it seems that his time teaching English in Columbia as a young man from Sussex inspired him to write this trilogy about the clashing and blending of Latin American cultures. His works, which he calls "tragicomedies", blend tragic and dark realism with interludes of slapstick comedy, and strike me as closer to Shakespeare in form than Márquez. I appreciate the author's nice balance of warm-hearted treatment of his characters and jaundiced vision of South America, finding it both entertaining and inspiring. However, mileage may vary among other readers, especially given the range in people's tolerance of politically slanted satire.

I love stories from South America. I like magical realism (when it's done well) and I like this style of humor. What else can I do but give it my all?

I would never guess that the author is English. It doesn't seem any less "South American" to me than, for example, "The House of the Spirits" by Isabel Allende or "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel García Márquez. And it's no worse.

You'll find everything there - dictators and partisans, generals and rainforest Indians, secret police and magical cats. And yet it's written so lightly and with humor that you don't even realize that some passages are like from "The Color Purple". Suffering and death are mixed with magic, with hope and love as well as with humor and absurdity, and the result is an excellent mixture, moreover perfectly translated. Long live Janiš :)

I'm looking forward to the next two parts and will definitely go on to read more of Bernieres' books. And of course I recommend it.

This truly combines the majority of my most beloved devices and themes - Latin American magical realism, multiple narratives, social critique, and so on.

I am deeply impressed by the quality and scope of de Bernières' voice as a European who writes so convincingly from a distinct cultural perspective.

I perhaps shouldn't be so astonished. I absolutely adored "Birds Without Wings", but considering that the continent and its writers occupy a very special place within my heart, I was initially sceptical.

However, the remainder of the trilogy has now found its way onto my to-read list. I am eager to explore and discover what more de Bernières has to offer, to immerse myself in his unique storytelling and to gain further insights into different cultures and perspectives through his works.

I anticipate that the upcoming books in the trilogy will be just as captivating and thought-provoking as "Birds Without Wings", and I look forward to embarking on this literary journey.

I really struggled to get into this particular book or text. It seemed that there were just an overwhelming number of characters to get my head round. I found it extremely difficult to keep track of who was who and what their relationships were. As I am a firm believer in only reading things that I enjoy, I simply couldn't force myself to continue. I felt that it was a waste of my time and energy to persevere with something that wasn't bringing me any pleasure. So, I made the decision to give up and move on to something else. I'm sure there are many other great books and texts out there that will capture my interest and keep me engaged from start to finish.

As with Captain Corelli's Mandolin, the first half of the book is written from a diverse and extensive cast of characters' different perspectives.

It delves into their individual life stories and presents their unique points of view, while also interspersing several political explanations.

These various threads are then gathered together in the middle, ultimately weaving a recognizable storyline.

I'm not entirely certain how I managed to read this entire book. In the first half, I was often left confused, hardly understanding what I was reading or who the characters were. Everything seemed so disjointed and difficult to follow.

However, just when I was on the verge of getting bored, something remarkable happened. Everything started to tie together miraculously, and I found myself becoming increasingly interested in a few of the characters.

The gurilleros, in particular, I found to be especially endearing.

I'm not typically inclined to read anything that is overly politically focused. Nevertheless, I endured it because it was quite enlightening to uncover just how corrupt and violent South America can be, at least when it comes to the army.

It was truly a learning experience, and overall, I did enjoy the majority of reading this book.

I recently delved into One Hundred Years of Solitude, but initially, I struggled to fully grasp its essence.

Thankfully, my recent encounter with it has been more enlightening. I now feel that I have a better understanding of South American magical realism and the profound intentions behind it.

This is an expansive tale, populated with a diverse cast of characters from every rung of the class ladder. Set in a minuscule town within an imagined South American country, the seemingly innocuous act of digging a canal to fill a swimming pool sets off a chain of events with far-reaching consequences that reverberate throughout the entire nation.

The story is a captivating blend of sadness, humor, satire, invention, and lush descriptions. I found myself completely enamored with all the characters, and I was truly impressed by how de Bernières masterfully balanced the gruesome with the farcical.

If you have a penchant for sprawling novels that are rich in complex characters, then this is definitely a must-read for you.