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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked the book, mostly because I like explicit extensive metaphors and the way they encompass how a romance can behave rationally, irrationally, in-between, etc. There are plot issues with it of course -- I don't want to romanticize a story starring a man who waited 53 years for a woman who seemed very uninterested in him, or a man who groomed a child, or a man who did five other rather subtle (unremarkable in the greater literary sense) yet very diabolic things throughout the course of the book. I like Márquez's writing, though, and how you are able to feel everything, which is why I'm rating it a four :-)
I took a very long time to get through the book, so a part of me finds the experience of having read it, the eventful five months of half-reading it, the more gratifying, echt event. I suppose that applies to any book though.
I took a very long time to get through the book, so a part of me finds the experience of having read it, the eventful five months of half-reading it, the more gratifying, echt event. I suppose that applies to any book though.
Incredibly well written obviously, but a lot of the content does not hold up. Had a hard time being invested in certain characters and outcomes because of it.
Marquez is very good at delving deep into his characters and showing us why they are the way that they are. That is what the novel is about than any plot, though the characters all revolve around one long and meandering thread of one man's desire for a woman he met as a youth.
It took me a second to get used to the writing style but once I adjusted I really enjoyed this read. It loses a star because of the general way women were described and the semi-incestual pedophilic relationship in the last quarter. Some of it can be ascribed to the time it was written in and the male author but there were some things that I couldn’t get past.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
emotional
funny
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It's hard to put my feelings about this into words. The writing is often so rich in description that it creates this incredible visual landscape that makes the scenarios feel vivid and real. The central romances are both beautifully written and feel pretty realistic.
Where the book falls short is its rampant racism and romanticism of rape and grooming. What could've been a stunning work of romance fiction is instead a repulsive display of bigotry and misogyny on so many levels.
There are detailed descriptions of his grooming a 12yo girl and the sexual relationship they begin when she's 14. This is not displayed for what it is - abuse - but instead as a romantic relationship that she's actively pursuing because she's in love with him. There are also multiple descriptions of rape that are romanticised to an unbelievable level - one character describes her rape by a stranger and then states that she's saving herself for him because he's the love of her life? It's completely disgusting.
The racism is uncomfortably present throughout the novel, both explicitly through the description of the Chinese community, but also implicitly through character descriptions. Any time a black character is being introduced, their visual descriptors are noticeably different - men are repeatedly described as having "the strength of a galley slave" and women are described as having "sharp black women's teeth" and "whorish" features.
The number of people who recommended this to me, and not one mentioned the issues here that are so clear in the text. This was only written 40 years ago and to me this is just unforgivable and I don't think anyone should look past this and forgive it for what it is.
Honestly I can't recommend enough that you use your time better and read something else.
Where the book falls short is its rampant racism and romanticism of rape and grooming. What could've been a stunning work of romance fiction is instead a repulsive display of bigotry and misogyny on so many levels.
There are detailed descriptions of his grooming a 12yo girl and the sexual relationship they begin when she's 14. This is not displayed for what it is - abuse - but instead as a romantic relationship that she's actively pursuing because she's in love with him. There are also multiple descriptions of rape that are romanticised to an unbelievable level - one character describes her rape by a stranger and then states that she's saving herself for him because he's the love of her life? It's completely disgusting.
The racism is uncomfortably present throughout the novel, both explicitly through the description of the Chinese community, but also implicitly through character descriptions. Any time a black character is being introduced, their visual descriptors are noticeably different - men are repeatedly described as having "the strength of a galley slave" and women are described as having "sharp black women's teeth" and "whorish" features.
The number of people who recommended this to me, and not one mentioned the issues here that are so clear in the text. This was only written 40 years ago and to me this is just unforgivable and I don't think anyone should look past this and forgive it for what it is.
Honestly I can't recommend enough that you use your time better and read something else.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault
Nonostante sia scritto incredibilmente bene, la storia non è abbastanza avvincente da renderlo scorrevole. Risulta abbastanza pesante, con pochissimi dialoghi e troppe descrizioni non funzionali al contesto. Ovviamente ci sono passaggi incredibili, però ho fatto fatica a finirlo.
Comunque alla fine è un libro sulla vita, l'amore e l'amore per la vita stessa, propria e altrui. Ho forse apprezzato di più la storia del non-amore tra il dottor Urbino e Fermina Daza, che quella dell'amore ossessivo e inquietante di Florentino Ariza. Fermina è scritta incredibilmente bene, dimostrando ancora una volta come Marquez sia in grado di dar vita o rispecchiare donne incredibilmente forti e stratificate.
Comunque alla fine è un libro sulla vita, l'amore e l'amore per la vita stessa, propria e altrui. Ho forse apprezzato di più la storia del non-amore tra il dottor Urbino e Fermina Daza, che quella dell'amore ossessivo e inquietante di Florentino Ariza. Fermina è scritta incredibilmente bene, dimostrando ancora una volta come Marquez sia in grado di dar vita o rispecchiare donne incredibilmente forti e stratificate.
The Larry McMurtry of Colombia. A well written story spanning the life of two misplaced lovers.
I promised to read this book quickly, and I tried, I really did -- but it just went so slowly for me. Every time I tried to read I would only get a couple of pages in and become very, very sleepy. I think that the story just wasn't as fast paced as I would have liked. I must say that I was a little disappointed with this book after all of the wonderful things that I have heard about it in the past.