Editors Reads Verdict
The darkest of the South American trilogy, and the most politically urgent. The portrait of a decent man trying to resist organised crime through the only means he has — words — is deeply moving.
What We Loved
- The most politically engaged of the trilogy
- The love story is genuinely moving
- The portrait of a principled man in an impossible situation
Minor Drawbacks
- Darker and less comic than the first volume
- The violence is more present and disturbing
Key Takeaways
- → Courage as the decision to speak when speaking is dangerous
- → The power of the drug cartels and their corruption of the state
- → Love as a source of the strength to resist
| Author | Louis de Bernières |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Vintage |
| Pages | 320 |
| Published | January 1, 1991 |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Magical Realism, Literary Fiction |
| Difficulty | Intermediate |
| Best For | Readers of the South American trilogy, those interested in Colombia, and readers of political literary fiction |
Dionisio Vivo is a professor of philosophy in a Colombian city who begins writing letters to the newspaper denouncing the coca lords. It is, in the circumstances, a suicidal activity — the cartels have corrupted the police, the army, and the government, and they deal with critics in the obvious way. But Dionisio continues writing, falls in love with a woman named Anica, and finds that the letters are being read more widely than he expected.
The second volume of de Bernières’s South American trilogy is its darkest and most politically urgent. The magical realism of the first volume is still present — cats that pass through walls, ghosts that give advice — but the tone has shifted. Violence that was partly comic in Don Emmanuel is now simply violent. The coca lords are not absurdist figures but genuinely dangerous men, and the novel’s portrait of a principled individual trying to resist organised crime through the only means he has — writing — is one of de Bernières’s most moving achievements.
The love story between Dionisio and Anica gives the novel its emotional centre, and de Bernières’s gift for rendering tenderness is fully present. Señor Vivo and the Coca Lord is the least immediately pleasurable of the trilogy but perhaps the most important, and it deepens the whole enterprise considerably.
Reading Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
What is "Señor Vivo and the Coca Lord" about?
The second South American novel — a professor of philosophy in a Colombian city writes letters to the newspaper denouncing the drug cartels, and falls in love, as the coca lords begin to notice him.
Who should read "Señor Vivo and the Coca Lord"?
Readers of the South American trilogy, those interested in Colombia, and readers of political literary fiction
What are the key takeaways from "Señor Vivo and the Coca Lord"?
Courage as the decision to speak when speaking is dangerous The power of the drug cartels and their corruption of the state Love as a source of the strength to resist
Is "Señor Vivo and the Coca Lord" worth reading?
The darkest of the South American trilogy, and the most politically urgent. The portrait of a decent man trying to resist organised crime through the only means he has — words — is deeply moving.
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