Tongolele no sabía bailar / Tongolele Did Not Know How to Dance

In 21st century Nicaragua, there are numerous popular uprisings that the government is brutally repressing, supported by the sinister head of the secret services. Inspector Dolores Morales must confront the terrible Tongolele, who is responsible for Morales’ exile in Honduras and who moves many threads in the country’s deranged politics with coldness and cynicism, partially thanks to his mother’s prophetic advice.

Sergio Ramírez’s masterful prose gradually reveals a murky network full of secrets, betrayals, and dark plots that Inspector Morales must face, backed by Lord Dixon, Ms. Sofia Smith, and his other partners. In an always volatile Nicaragua, missteps can cause the ultimate collapse of those who resist the establishment in power.

The exceptional literary excellence of Sergio Ramírez’s writing reflects the liveliness of everyday life and turns reality into a work of art, combining narration, poetry, and the rigor of the observer and actor. The Cervantes Prize Jury commended the work for its plurality of genres.