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curran_brian's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
robert_bethencourt's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
elisascrive's review against another edition
The wall of text didn’t do it for me. Forse è per il mio attention span di 15 millesimi, ma non riuscivo a stare dietro alla storia senza distrarmi.
I paragrafi, caro amico dal cognome impronunciabile, ti prego.
As far as the trama goes, ancora non era successo nulla per le prime 100 pagine. Altro deterrente.
I paragrafi, caro amico dal cognome impronunciabile, ti prego.
As far as the trama goes, ancora non era successo nulla per le prime 100 pagine. Altro deterrente.
naddie_reads's review against another edition
3.0
Because, at that moment, he comprehended the driving force behind all this: necessity providing the momentum for existence, momentum bringing forth preparation, preparation in turn paving the way for participation, a positive participation in the relationships thus prescribed, the point at which our very beings try to choose whatever is favourable through a set of predetermined exploratory reflexes, so that accomplishment should depend on them, and the question of whether such a relationship really existed naturally enough presented itself to him in passing, and it depended on patience, on the fine particulars and accidentals of the struggle, since the success of the enterprise, the achievement of a depersonalized sense of mere presence, he now acknowledged, and indeed saw, had a decidedly hit-or-miss kind of significance.
Strong start & ending with some insightful philosophical musings sandwiched in between, but I could’ve done with a shorter length of that sandwiched portion tbh. Ending saved this from becoming a 2 star read for me.
aksaah95's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
arby55's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
zaisgraph's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
If László Krasznahorkai wanted me immersed into what it means to be the village idiot then he largely succeeded in The Melencholy of Resistance. My wits and patience haven't been stretched this much by anything I've willingly picked-up in a very, very long time. I MEAN I DUG DEEP AND I CAN ONLY COMPARE READING THIS TO MY COLLEGE LEVEL CHEMISTRY BOOK. This is that sorta feeling I have never expected to revisit.
First and foremost, I was expecting a story about a Circus. That's why I picked this up lol. I mean this technically has an actual one but it is more of a travelling taxidermied whale exhibit with some sort of cult of personality "The Prince." To be honest, the lack of a big top, trapeze artists, clowns and fortune tellers made me utterly disappointed.
Melancholy started fine enough. I thought this will be tackling women's issues since the first 15 percent or so depicted what it's like to use public transport as generously endowed middle-aged woman (Mrs. Plauf - mother of the protagonist). I actually enjoyed the insightful social commentary here. But when the train ride was over it dawned on me that this isn't a typical novel at all. The sentences here are like very, very long. Like paragraph length. And the paragraphs never seem to end. It's like it forces you to mentally check-out. And check-out I did. I constantly found myself knee deep into another character's slicd of story without realizing I switched. Like WTF. Additionally, the expositions are rather wild and go in truly unexpected directions.
Anyways the main protagonist here is Valuska. The village idiot. Thus my theory that daddy Lazslo wrote this book this way to expose my stupidity and relate to Valuska. Anyways he wasn't sympathetically portrayed at the beginning but he eventually won me over. I just think he had a rather messy upbringing and dug himself into a well he couldn't fully escape from. He is not buried by any means. He's just soaking. Also quite possibly, he has an undiagnosed learning impediment. I think he gets by through a mixture of charity and the odd job here and there. Like a village cat I guess, the town's baby? I dunno.
Anyways the "circus" arrives to town and actually brings a circus with it. Well yeah... that's also a circus come to think of it, because the state of living in chaos is really a circus. Love that. Whew. To further explain, the circus I meant is in the form a destructive mob of circus stans. I may have missed why they like general societal disarray but I think it has to do with the messaging of the enigmatic Prince, the bigger of the only two attractions of this circus (apart from the taxidermied whale).
To avoid telling the whole story, I'll just discuss the most touching scene for me and why I liked it and followed by a short discussion of the villain.
First my fave thing on here. The second biggest character in Melancholy is Eszter. I guess he is Val's primary employer and Val is his errand boy and caregiver. Anyways he is an elderly recluse who has sway in the town. But enough of that. Some people like him, kinda keep people beneath them like Val as some sort of a crutch. Then one day comes wherein they realize that person's value and the one-sidedness of that friendship becomes a fully actualized link. That part is so beautiful to me and feels quite egalitarian hahahaha.
The villain here is his estranged (?) wife, Mrs. Eszter. I think she set this whole thing in. motion. This woman is the queen of hustle and social climbing. A true representation of of the ashes... A vulture who is present at a power vacuum. Because as you know, there is chaos in this book haha. Unlike all Scooby-Doo villains, her scheme worked. Surprise, surprise! This biatch got everything she wanted.
Anyways if you want a truly challenging read that will test your perseverance, you can't go wrong with The Melencholy of Resistance. In reality, the story is quite simple and straightforward. However the stuff packed in between makes it quite difficult to get through. Such a good representation of actual life 🤷♂️
Some avoid it, some can't comprehend it, some make it.
First and foremost, I was expecting a story about a Circus. That's why I picked this up lol. I mean this technically has an actual one but it is more of a travelling taxidermied whale exhibit with some sort of cult of personality "The Prince." To be honest, the lack of a big top, trapeze artists, clowns and fortune tellers made me utterly disappointed.
Melancholy started fine enough. I thought this will be tackling women's issues since the first 15 percent or so depicted what it's like to use public transport as generously endowed middle-aged woman (Mrs. Plauf - mother of the protagonist). I actually enjoyed the insightful social commentary here. But when the train ride was over it dawned on me that this isn't a typical novel at all. The sentences here are like very, very long. Like paragraph length. And the paragraphs never seem to end. It's like it forces you to mentally check-out. And check-out I did. I constantly found myself knee deep into another character's slicd of story without realizing I switched. Like WTF. Additionally, the expositions are rather wild and go in truly unexpected directions.
Anyways the main protagonist here is Valuska. The village idiot. Thus my theory that daddy Lazslo wrote this book this way to expose my stupidity and relate to Valuska. Anyways he wasn't sympathetically portrayed at the beginning but he eventually won me over. I just think he had a rather messy upbringing and dug himself into a well he couldn't fully escape from. He is not buried by any means. He's just soaking. Also quite possibly, he has an undiagnosed learning impediment. I think he gets by through a mixture of charity and the odd job here and there. Like a village cat I guess, the town's baby? I dunno.
Anyways the "circus" arrives to town and actually brings a circus with it. Well yeah... that's also a circus come to think of it, because the state of living in chaos is really a circus. Love that. Whew. To further explain, the circus I meant is in the form a destructive mob of circus stans. I may have missed why they like general societal disarray but I think it has to do with the messaging of the enigmatic Prince, the bigger of the only two attractions of this circus (apart from the taxidermied whale).
To avoid telling the whole story, I'll just discuss the most touching scene for me and why I liked it and followed by a short discussion of the villain.
First my fave thing on here. The second biggest character in Melancholy is Eszter. I guess he is Val's primary employer and Val is his errand boy and caregiver. Anyways he is an elderly recluse who has sway in the town. But enough of that. Some people like him, kinda keep people beneath them like Val as some sort of a crutch. Then one day comes wherein they realize that person's value and the one-sidedness of that friendship becomes a fully actualized link. That part is so beautiful to me and feels quite egalitarian hahahaha.
The villain here is his estranged (?) wife, Mrs. Eszter. I think she set this whole thing in. motion. This woman is the queen of hustle and social climbing. A true representation of of the ashes... A vulture who is present at a power vacuum. Because as you know, there is chaos in this book haha. Unlike all Scooby-Doo villains, her scheme worked. Surprise, surprise! This biatch got everything she wanted.
Anyways if you want a truly challenging read that will test your perseverance, you can't go wrong with The Melencholy of Resistance. In reality, the story is quite simple and straightforward. However the stuff packed in between makes it quite difficult to get through. Such a good representation of actual life 🤷♂️
Some avoid it, some can't comprehend it, some make it.