Title: "Pantaleon y las visitadoras"
("Captain Pantoja and the Special Service" in the English translation)
Author: Mario Vargas Llosa
Length: 391 pages
Country of Origin: Spain
Grade: 4 and 1/2 stars out of 5

Summary:
Based on a true story, Captain Pantoja is transferred to Iquitos, Peru, an obscure town in Peru´s Amazon, to set up a prostitution service for the Peruvian Armed Forces due to the influx of rapes caused by soldiers´ pent up sexual frustrations. Dressed as a civilian, the service must be kept secret to all including his wife as this would cause a scandal for the Peruvian Army. Along with the prostitution service´s great rise success and fame, a religious sect is building up in magnitude, as they leave behind them a trail of crucified animals bodies and people. Although a seemingly dark story, this book is a humorous look (presented as official army documents and conversations) at the absurdity behind the army and religious sects as
both clash in the end for a dramatic result.

My thoughts:
I loved this book! I could not stop laughing for the entire first half of the novel and then couldn´t put it down afterwards as I was entranced by the dramatic (yet expected) crash and burn of the service and sect.
Some criticize that this was a weak effort on Llosa´s part but what they miss is the fact that Llosa himself knew that the book was going to be absurd and admits that this was the easiest book for him to write and the most fun. It was not meant to be serious and philosophical.
The idea of a prostitution service in the army screams absurdity and can only be met by laughter and hilarity especially with a character such as Captain Pantoja. The style of the book enhances the plot as you see how the captain´s obsessive nature for perfection meets the world of prostitution.
A wonderful book with high high recomendations to others. If you´ve been reading serious novels lately, this is definitely a good way to relax and laugh.

Notes:
I read the book in the original Spanish so I can´t say anything about the English version and the quality of it. According to what I´ve read off of Amazon, I haven´t seen any complaints. Llosa is a famous author so I´m sure they´ve found the best of the best to translate his work.
Also, while reading, I didn´t notice any real huge stylistic passages or Spanish idioms that would make a translation difficult. It´s fairly straightforward so I´m sure the English version will still be a wonderful read. ( )

Pantaleón Pantoja tem um senso de disciplina tão profundo que é encarregado pelo Exército peruano de organizar um bordel itinerante. Sua missão é reduzir as taxas de estupro nas zonas militarizadas, oferecendo prostitutas aos soldados. Em cartas enviadas a seus superiores, ele relata o seu sucesso e os testes que faz pessoalmente com as visitadoras. Tudo vai bem até ele se apaixonar pela mais bela das prostitutas.