Feast of the Goat

The Feast of the Goat: A Novel by Mario Vargas Llosa, translated by Edith Grossman

Rafael Trujillo ruled the Dominican Republic as a cruel dictator. Near the end of his reign, there was extreme depravity. He demanded loyalty and killing of enemies. He enjoyed showing his virility by sleeping with girls, especially young ones. The novel covers much of this depravity as it tells the story of a senator and his daughter. The senator fell out of favor with the dictator and had everything taken away from him and is even forced to give his daughter to the dictator's pleasure. After the experience, she is able to leave to study in the US. Shortly after that the dictator is assassinated. However, the planned coup fell apart and eventually another strongman came to power. The framing story is that of the girl returning back home to care for her ailing father (the former Senator) and the current state of the Dominican Republic. This is interleaved with the many tails of the past and the terrors of the regime. It uses this fictional framing to provide a strong story of the terrors of the past regime.