Reviews - The Posthumous Memoirs of Brás Cubas

952 reviews for:

The Posthumous Memoirs of Brás Cubas

Machado de Assis

4.07 AVERAGE

cora062's review against another edition

3.5

funny reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

houseofvellichor's review against another edition

4.0

A very strong 4.5.
A fantastic tale, masterful translation, thanks to which I got to see the character’s poise, wit, indulgence and regrets.

applebottomjean's review against another edition

4.0

i have NEVER read anything like this before and am definitely going to reread it at some point in the future because i feel like my opinion will develop once the initial shock of the writing style wears off. the narrative voice is so distinct and i find the sppeaker so unlikeable and weirdly endearing in the way he reflects on his life. he's funny, really dark, blunt, morally questionable, and simultaneously self-loathing and self-obsessed?!? and so tangential. the chapters are short, and always go in the direction you least expect - one moment you're reading about the beauty of a woman he loves and in the next you're reading from the perspective of a butterfly he kills, or caught in one of his delusions where he's riding a hippopotamus. at other times, he decides the chapter is too long and simply cuts off whatever anecdote he is recalling. this novel breaks so many rules both in structure and in the moral complexity of the protagonist, so if you're looking for something experimental, unsettling, semi-abstract, and thought-provoking, this is it.

p.s. i read the Costa & Patterson translation

ascheib's review against another edition

3.75

funny reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

la_mordida's review against another edition

4.0

Underneath the pomo trickery is a fairly mundane story, wrapped in the social mores of the authors time. I don't think I particularly carried for the marriage/infidelity plots, but the fun chapters (for which it is famous) made up for it.