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4.21 AVERAGE
4.21 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape, Torture, Violence
Magical and joyous but also violent and tragic. I liked the fantastic elements and the numerous and very different characters in this story.
The history of the family is full of unforgettable stories.
The history of the family is full of unforgettable stories.
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Someone I worked with at a bookstore once told me how great Allende was, and this story in particular was her favorite. This was over a decade ago, and pretty soon after she mentioned it I read it, and then through a couple more years I would read Eva Luna and maybe one other. At the time I would have sworn that I loved Allende, I use to name her as one of my favorite authors, but as I picked up this book again after finding a paperback copy at a library bookstore, I came to realize I did not remember much of the story at all.
This time I read with less haste, humbled by how I had thrown out her name to those asking, as if I could say what actually happened in any of her books. When I thought myself more well read than I was.
The story is far deeper than I remembered. Intricate, hard to swallow at times, beautiful in others. I stopped reading it and went on to other books a few times, but it haunted me in my shelf demanding I finish it before the year was over. And so I did. Today I read the last 1/6th give or take, and it brought the whole story together so well.
Allende writes stories that take time. She writes characters that are so easy to hate but are so loved by their families.
As much as I just wanted to finish this one and be done, I’ll probably pick up and reread Eva Luna in the new year, there is so much I have forgotten.
This time I read with less haste, humbled by how I had thrown out her name to those asking, as if I could say what actually happened in any of her books. When I thought myself more well read than I was.
The story is far deeper than I remembered. Intricate, hard to swallow at times, beautiful in others. I stopped reading it and went on to other books a few times, but it haunted me in my shelf demanding I finish it before the year was over. And so I did. Today I read the last 1/6th give or take, and it brought the whole story together so well.
Allende writes stories that take time. She writes characters that are so easy to hate but are so loved by their families.
As much as I just wanted to finish this one and be done, I’ll probably pick up and reread Eva Luna in the new year, there is so much I have forgotten.
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
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
This book was recommended to me as "middlesex meets one hundred years of solitude." Both of which are among my favorite books of all time. And now I'm adding this one to that category. Allende wove a perfectly epic story that made me laugh early on and weep near the end.
This book has left me speechless. What a superb work of Latin literature! For those with an understanding of Latin American culture realize that magical realism is a part of culture. To watch the evolution of the book through each generation---political climate changes, cultural changes, world influences, and world leadership---lends the reader the ability to empathize both with each generation; hoping for a cross-generational reconciliation. Superb, well-written, enrapturing, Ms. Allende, weaves bright colors of common threads across the changing face of her literary tapestry. A masterpiece.