Context:

Dominic explicitly mentions reading this book and describes it as 'the definitive English language history of Brazil, a sort of academic history of Brazil' that is 'absolutely brilliant on the world of Rio in the mid-19th century'

Context:

Dominic references this as 'a brilliant book' by 'the Peruvian novelist' that covers the War of Canudos in 1890s Brazil, which involved a millenarian religious movement led by Antonio the Counselor