José Milla y Vidaurre

José Milla y Vidaurre (August 4, 1822 in Guatemala City — September 30, 1882) was a notable Guatemalan writer of the 19th century. He was also known by the name Pepe Milla and the pseudonym Salomé Jil. Son of a governor of the state of Honduras in the Federal Republic of Central America, José Justo de la Milla y Pineda and Mrs. Mercedes Vidaurre Molina, the daughter of a wealthy Guatemalan family. He was married to his cousin, Mercedes Vidaurre and had 7 daughters and sons.

José Milla y Vidaurre
Born	(1822-08-04)August 4, 1822 Guatemala City, First Mexican Empire
Died	(1882-09-30)September 30, 1882 −60
Pen name	Salomé Jil
Nickname	Pepe Milla
Nationality	Guatemalan
Spouse	Mercedes Vidaurre Molina
Children	José, Mercedes, María del Rosario, Marta, Luisa, Pedro and Agustín

Milla grew up in a time of great instability, where the struggles between liberals and conservatives were bringing chaos to Guatemala. He came from a well-to-do family and was not a politically relevant figure. However, it is known that he had conservative tendencies and came to public office under conservative governments.

His works can be qualified under various literary genres, although they were mainly dedicated to story-telling, novels and more specifically historical novels. His main theme was life in the colonial Guatemala. His "novelas costumbristas" are about the customs of Guatemalan people during colonial times and during the first years after Guatemalan independence.

In his works, he shows an ability for story-telling and imagination. For him, one of the main functions of literature was to entertain and his books are examples of such function. Jose Milla was well-educated, an expert of Guatemalan idiosyncrasies, its history and its customs.