The War of the End of the World. Mario Vargas Llosa

“The War of the End of the World” is one of the most outstanding historical novels of the 20th century. Mario Vargas Llosa, inspired by a real episode in Brazilian history — the so-called “War of Canudos” — created a monumental chronicle of a religious movement led by a mysterious Mentor, in which prostitutes, beggars and former bandits at the end of the 19th century founded Belo Monte — a theocratic republic, a kind of “city of God”. The followers considered the Mentor to be the new Christ, called themselves “the chosen ones”, and at first none of them thought of fighting. The community settled in the abandoned town of Canudos to save their souls on the eve of the imminent end of the world, and soon the number of “the chosen ones” reached thirty thousand. However, the authorities of the young Brazilian republic saw in the actions of the Mentor an open monarchist uprising, a rebellion that must be immediately suppressed so that other regions do not follow his example. The Brazilian army was launched against the community, and one punitive expedition after another was defeated...

Llosa's book is a bloody story of faith, self-deception, ignorance and misunderstanding, a story that is at times extremely cruel and at the same time tender and poignant. And above all, it is incredibly modern.