Huerto Cerrado (English: Closed Orchard) is a collection of short stories written by Peruvian author Alfredo Bryce Echenique.
[1] Published in 1968, it was Bryce's debut in the literary world and won him special mention in the Casa de las Américas Prize of that year.
The stories take the form of a bildungsroman and are written in a variety of styles and perspectives and follow the protagonist, Manolo, in his journey of self-discovery.
Each short story shows Manolo in a different stage of his life and reflects the social and historical context of Peruvian society in the 1960s.
They meet Jimmy, one of Manolo's classmates, whose higher social station allows him to treat the law and societal norms with contempt.
This story takes the form of extracts from Manolo's diary, which chronicles his summer romance with Cecilia, a girl he met at the local swimming pool.
His English teacher, Mr Davenhock, puts his suffering into perspective by telling him about his German girlfriend, from whom he was separated for ever by World War II.
In this story, Manolo has entered university, and takes advantage of a gullible schoolgirl by telling her all the things that she wants to hear: that he has rich parents, a big house, drives a sports car etc.