Increasingly, he has expanded his range, and tackled themes that arise from other parts of the world. Many of Vargas Llosa's works are influenced by the writer's perception of Peruvian society and his own experiences as a native Peruvian. Several, such as Captain Pantoja and the Special Service (1973/1978) and Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter (1977/1982), have been adapted as feature films. His novels include comedies, murder mysteries, historical novels, and political thrillers. He writes prolifically across an array of literary genres, including literary criticism and journalism. Vargas Llosa rose to international fame in the 1960s with novels such as The Time of the Hero ( La ciudad y los perros, literally The City and the Dogs, 1963/1966), The Green House ( La casa verde, 1965/1968), and the monumental Conversation in the Cathedral ( Conversación en la catedral, 1969/1975). In 2010 he won the Nobel Prize in Literature, 'for his cartography of structures of power and his trenchant images of the individual's resistance, revolt, and defeat.' He also won the 1967 Rómulo Gallegos Prize, the 1986 Prince of Asturias Award, the 1994 Miguel de Cervantes Prize, the 1995 Jerusalem Prize, the 2012 Carlos Fuentes International Prize, and the 2018 Pablo Neruda Order of Artistic and Cultural Merit.

Some critics consider him to have had a larger international impact and worldwide audience than any other writer of the Latin American Boom.

Vargas Llosa is one of Latin America's most significant novelists and essayists, and one of the leading writers of his generation. Jorge Mario Pedro Vargas Llosa, 1st Marquis of Vargas Llosa (born 28 March 1936), more commonly known as Mario Vargas Llosa ( / ˌ v ɑːr ɡ ə s ˈ j oʊ s ə/, Spanish: ), is a Peruvian novelist, journalist, essayist, and a former politician, who also holds Spanish citizenship.

He was brave in spanish