Series
Publication
Biblioteca Breve (1986), Edition: Spanish, 189 pages
Original publication date
1986 (original Spanish)
1987 (English: Mac Adam)
Collections
Description
In Peru in the 1950s, two unglamourous detectives, Lieutenant Silva and Officer Lituma, find that everyone is indifferent to the murder investigation of a young airman.
User reviews
LibraryThing member kidzdoc
Palomino Molero is a young airman in the Peruvian Air Force who is found brutally murdered near his base by a goatherd. The local Guardia Civil is notified, and Lieutenant Silva and Officer Lituma undertake an investigation. The pair soon find out that Palomino left the base several days before his
Who Killed Palomino Molero? is a mystery set in mid-20th century Peru, which lightly touches on class and racial differences, corruption, and power. It does not have the complexity or power of Vargas Llosa's better known novels, such as The Time of the Hero or The Conversation in the Cathedral, but it was still an enjoyable read.
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murder, and suspect that his killers will be found there. The commanding officer, Colonel Mindreau, a haughty white officer, condescendingly tells the pair (who are cholos, like the murdered airman) that he has investigated the case and concluded that no one on the base knows anything about the crime. The lieutenant is far from convinced, however, particularly when the colonel becomes enraged and flustered after he is questioned further. The officers are hampered by their inability to interview anyone on the base by the colonel, until an anonymous tip points them in the right direction.Who Killed Palomino Molero? is a mystery set in mid-20th century Peru, which lightly touches on class and racial differences, corruption, and power. It does not have the complexity or power of Vargas Llosa's better known novels, such as The Time of the Hero or The Conversation in the Cathedral, but it was still an enjoyable read.
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LibraryThing member cammykitty
When I put this book down, I thought, well that was a straight forward mystery and not what I expect from a Nobel prize winning author. Then I thought about it for awhile. How unsatisfactory a conclusion. Threads were dangling and things about the official statement didn't add up with the facts of
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the case... Don't trust this author. Ever. Show Less
LibraryThing member gbill
An entertaining, brisk read, which opens with the discovery of a soldier’s mutilated body. The murder mystery is fairly straightforward, though Vargas Llosa mixes in elements of class and race, and the parallel story of Lieutenant Silva pursuing Dona Adriana, a married woman, is just as
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interesting. There are elements of comedy as well, such as when Silva brings Officer Lituma along to spy on Adriana from a rocky crag with binoculars while she strips down to her slip and goes swimming, only to get caught in the act by a young woman who is involved in the case. I only knocked my rating down a bit because it’s so short, and it seemed to me the story could have been fleshed out more. Show Less
LibraryThing member isabelx
The body of an air force deserter is found near a small town in the Peruvian desert, tortured and impaled on a tree. The officers of the Guardia Civil are badly equipped, having to hitchhike and hire taxis as they follow up leads, but determined not to let the lack of co-operation from the local
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air force base stand in their way. There is lots of food for thought about racial, sexual and class issues in Peru. I liked this a lot and wish it had been longer, as it was only 150 pages long. Show Less
LibraryThing member smik
WHO KILLED PALOMINO MOLERO? is quite different to my usual reading fare. It reminded me of someone like Ernest Hemingway in the way it commented on the social structures and times within which is set.
Usually when the murder of a military person occurs off base there is a struggle about who will do
When Lieutenant Silva tries to question personnel on the air force base after the identity of the victim has been established he strikes brick walls, partly because of this conflict between jurisdictions.
"But until a direct order comes, either from the Air Ministry or the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, no Guardia Civil is going to violate the code of military justice in a base under my command.
Is that clear, Lieutenant Silva? Answer me. Is that clear?”
“Quite clear, Colonel.”
Officer Lituma, a cholo, sees the interview he and Lieutenant Silva had with Colonel Mindreau very different. He sees the treatment they received as racial. Silva, whose skin is a much lighter colour, is not as offended and believes he is making progress.
“He really put us through the ringer, didn’t he, Lieutenant?” Lituma dried his brow with a handkerchief. “I’ve never met a guy with a worse temper. Do you think he hates the Guardia Civil just because he’s a racist, or do you think he has a specific reason? Or does he treat everybody that way? Nobody, I swear, ever made me swallow so much shit as that bald bastard.”
“You’re out of your head, Lituma. As far as I’m concerned, the interview with Mindreau was a total success.”
“Are you serious, Lieutenant? I’m glad to see you can still make jokes. As far as I’m concerned, that little chat was as depressing as it could be.”
“You’ve got a lot to learn about this business, Lituma,” said the lieutenant, laughing. “It was a bitch of an interview, let me tell you. Unbelievably useful.”
“That means I didn’t understand a thing, Lieutenant. It looked to me as though the colonel was treating us like scum, worse than the way he probably treats his servants. Did he even give us what we asked for?”
“Appearances are tricky, Lituma.” Lieutenant Silva once again burst into laughter. “As far as I’m concerned, the colonel yakked like a drunken parrot.” He laughed again, with his mouth wide open. Then he cracked his knuckles. “Before, I thought he knew nothing, that he was fucking around with us because he wanted to protect the precious rights of the military-justice system. Now I’m sure that he knows a lot, maybe everything that happened.”
Lituma looked at him again. He guessed that behind those sunglasses the lieutenant’s eyes, like his face and his voice, were those of a happy man.
“You think he knows who killed Palomino Molero? Do you really think the colonel knows?”
“I don’t know exactly what he knows,"
For Palomino Molero, who was not only a mere airman, but also a cholo but a little lighter skinned than most, and a beautiful singer, had ideas above his station.
An interesting book not only for the well plotted mystery, but also for what it says about Peru in the 1950s. I read it for the South American category of the 2012 Global Reading Challenge
Usually when the murder of a military person occurs off base there is a struggle about who will do
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the actual investigation. In this case it seems likely that the victim's fellow airmen are fully aware of who killed Palomino Molero and why.When Lieutenant Silva tries to question personnel on the air force base after the identity of the victim has been established he strikes brick walls, partly because of this conflict between jurisdictions.
"But until a direct order comes, either from the Air Ministry or the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, no Guardia Civil is going to violate the code of military justice in a base under my command.
Is that clear, Lieutenant Silva? Answer me. Is that clear?”
“Quite clear, Colonel.”
Officer Lituma, a cholo, sees the interview he and Lieutenant Silva had with Colonel Mindreau very different. He sees the treatment they received as racial. Silva, whose skin is a much lighter colour, is not as offended and believes he is making progress.
“He really put us through the ringer, didn’t he, Lieutenant?” Lituma dried his brow with a handkerchief. “I’ve never met a guy with a worse temper. Do you think he hates the Guardia Civil just because he’s a racist, or do you think he has a specific reason? Or does he treat everybody that way? Nobody, I swear, ever made me swallow so much shit as that bald bastard.”
“You’re out of your head, Lituma. As far as I’m concerned, the interview with Mindreau was a total success.”
“Are you serious, Lieutenant? I’m glad to see you can still make jokes. As far as I’m concerned, that little chat was as depressing as it could be.”
“You’ve got a lot to learn about this business, Lituma,” said the lieutenant, laughing. “It was a bitch of an interview, let me tell you. Unbelievably useful.”
“That means I didn’t understand a thing, Lieutenant. It looked to me as though the colonel was treating us like scum, worse than the way he probably treats his servants. Did he even give us what we asked for?”
“Appearances are tricky, Lituma.” Lieutenant Silva once again burst into laughter. “As far as I’m concerned, the colonel yakked like a drunken parrot.” He laughed again, with his mouth wide open. Then he cracked his knuckles. “Before, I thought he knew nothing, that he was fucking around with us because he wanted to protect the precious rights of the military-justice system. Now I’m sure that he knows a lot, maybe everything that happened.”
Lituma looked at him again. He guessed that behind those sunglasses the lieutenant’s eyes, like his face and his voice, were those of a happy man.
“You think he knows who killed Palomino Molero? Do you really think the colonel knows?”
“I don’t know exactly what he knows,"
For Palomino Molero, who was not only a mere airman, but also a cholo but a little lighter skinned than most, and a beautiful singer, had ideas above his station.
An interesting book not only for the well plotted mystery, but also for what it says about Peru in the 1950s. I read it for the South American category of the 2012 Global Reading Challenge
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LibraryThing member kakadoo202
Creative story and in the end you are not sure what really happened. Great characters
LibraryThing member sometimeunderwater
Now I know who killed Palomino Molero.
LibraryThing member amaraki
Interesting look at a foreign culture.Structure of narrator a bit confusing for me jumping between assistant cop's internal angst and the third person narrator. I found the last pages the most interesting as the locals gossip and stretch the findings out of shape to suit their biases. Reminds me of
It was pretty obvious who killed whom from the start and the story was not built around the clever detectives observing clues to work it out, but rather a social narrative as they worked toward the solution of the crime based on informer tip. I liked it especially as it was short.
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current social media distortions of events.It was pretty obvious who killed whom from the start and the story was not built around the clever detectives observing clues to work it out, but rather a social narrative as they worked toward the solution of the crime based on informer tip. I liked it especially as it was short.
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Language
Original language
Spanish
ISBN
8432205427 / 9788432205422
Physical description
189 p.; 5.25 inches
Pages
189