What are the motifs in The News from Paraguay by Lily Tuck?

Military Strategy strategy is a reoccurring idea in the book. Both sides in the war suffer from lack of good military strategists, Paraguay especially so. Franco foolishly staffs his military with high-level commanders and generals picked, not due to their military background, but due to their personal relations with him. Many of his relatives are handpicked to be his staff, even though they have no military experience. This cronyism combined with Franco's arrogance and micro-managing style causes many bad decisions, which eventually result in Franco's defeat and death.