Mario Vargas Llosa, giant of Latin American literature, dies aged 89

‘In Latin America we prefer promises to reality’ … Mario Vargas Llosa in 2012. The author, Nobel laureate and presidential candidate has died aged 89. Photograph: Felix Clay/The Guardian

Peruvian novelist Mario Vargas Llosa, one of the pivotal figures who ignited a global boom in Latin American literature, has died aged 89.

His death on Sunday was announced in a statement signed by his children, Álvaro, Gonzalo and Morgana Vargas Llosa.