Reviews

Pedro Páramo, by Juan Rulfo

unfoldingdrama's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

aldoojeda's review against another edition

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5.0

No, pos sí. Pedro Páramo es todo lo que te han dicho que es. Al epónimo del libro lo conocemos por los murmullos de los muertos, que recuerdan de manera no consecutiva y en saltos lo sucedido en el pueblo de Comala. Capa por capa la historia se desmaraña de manera deliciosa.

elanadoren's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

yungjulchen's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

lookhome's review against another edition

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4.0

In the village of Comala, the divide between the living and the dead has disintegrated.
The consequences of a single deed has brought utter catastrophe to a village populated by thugs, saints, rebels and priests...
Yeats' poem The Second Coming probably sums up the sensation best:
Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world...
This anarchy consists of tales of love, lust and loss in this quasi-picaresque set of macabre stories.
While the prose is never more than a few moments away from bouts of wonder, the novel's true magic lies in Rulfo's ability to humanize and arguably vindicate his title character, Pedro Paramo's deplorable actions.
Subtly collapsing past and present, living and dead, normal and abnormal into a unique, wonder-filled narrative, we are left with a deceptively interconnected set of tales. We see a village populated of people whose lives have come undone by a man who may have simply loved too deeply in youth.

Strongly recommended.

ahar7911's review against another edition

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4.0

expectation-wise threw me a little off, because this isn't magical realism at all - it's just a ghost(s') story, and a beautifully written one with plenty of murder to boot (go mexican lit?!). unsure why marquez called it the inspiration for one hundred years when it's more obviously a precursor to chronicle of a death foretold. a book i think i'd fall in love rereading and knowing more what it's about.

fennec_the_fox's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

4.0

agda's review against another edition

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não tô no espírito de pensar demais

jakeadam's review against another edition

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4.0

if you want to know what i thought you should join my short book club

stoks's review against another edition

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4.0

This book feels like a Salvador Dali painting and I understand it just about as much.