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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
Absolutamente precioso.
Es increíble pensar cómo se ha podido hacer esta reconstrucción histórica y tan intimista de este personaje.
Es increíble pensar cómo se ha podido hacer esta reconstrucción histórica y tan intimista de este personaje.
Al fin. He tardado tanto en leerla como Marguerite en escribirla y Cortazar en traducirla. Y reconozco que le estoy dando una valoración absolutamente subjetiva que no refleja el valor literario de la obra. Pero es que es un truño. Es un repaso intimista, filosófico y relexivo de la vida de Adriano hecho por el mismo en visperas de su muerte. Y no hay nada salvo eso, intimismo y reflexión. Donde Graves triunfa mostrando un mosaico de ambición, locura y humanidad en la voz pretenciosa del desdichado Claudio, Yourcenar nos aburre con reflexiones interminables en las que todo el Imperio Romano y los hechos históricos se resumen en unas pocas giras y visitas en las que no ocurre nada. No hay personajes ni trama. Lo he terminado por cabezonería.
challenging
informative
slow-paced
I'm conflicted on this one. I agree with others, the writing is extraordinary, however, I also found it to be lacking in emotion, almost like reading a textbook. For that reason, I'm going to hold off on a rating. Lovers of non-fiction history or those particularly interested in the Roman Empire, will be plenty satisfied. Although the work is historic fiction, and artistic license taken to round out the story, it's clear the author performed an epic amount of research.
Hay obras que son grandes en su pequeñez, y obras que son pequeñas en su grandeza. “Memorias de Adriano” me parece de estas últimas. Es una novela cargada de virtuosismo, pero no de genialidad. La autora se sumerge completamente en el personaje, y construye un relato extremadamente complejo y perfecto, por el cual merece admiración. Pero es una admiración fría porque, al menos que uno sea un auténtico fanático del mundo clásico, no llega dentro del lector, ni atrapa, como sí lo hacen otras novelas que probablemente requirieron menos esfuerzo de escribir, y que son, no obstante, más cautivadoras. No quiero decir con ello que no sea una buena lectura, sino que es quizás demasiado trabajosa, demasiado sofisticada, para lo que termina siendo en conjunto.
reflective
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
A beautifully composed and immersive transportation into the second century. The author admits no distance between herself and the narrator, leaving it to the reader to descry his deceit and his honor. I loved the chapter Tellus Stabilita, which felt like playing a game of Civilization. The author’s Reflections on the Composition were themselves a touching meditation on aging, world war, and the pursuit of an intellectual opus.
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Marguerite Yourcenar's book "Memoirs of Hadrian" is definitely one of those novels that I can appreciate without having enjoyed.
It is very clear how much work Yourcenar book into the book, in which Hadrian, a Roman emperor tells his life story via a letter. It clearly has been meticulously researched and fills in the gaps on Hadrian's life quite well.
I found the book deadly boring though... probably because this time period really doesn't interest me in the slightest and I didn't find the ins and outs of Roman politics at all interesting. For the right audience, I can see how this would be a terrific book.
It is very clear how much work Yourcenar book into the book, in which Hadrian, a Roman emperor tells his life story via a letter. It clearly has been meticulously researched and fills in the gaps on Hadrian's life quite well.
I found the book deadly boring though... probably because this time period really doesn't interest me in the slightest and I didn't find the ins and outs of Roman politics at all interesting. For the right audience, I can see how this would be a terrific book.
Bellissimo, me ne avevano parlato come di un libro noioso, da leggere con wikipedia alla mano, ma la Yourcenar ci fa entrare in un mondo così lontano, ma al contempo attualissimo in modo lieve, sembra quasi che Adriano parli proprio con noi lettori, uno per uno.
Le vicende che fanno da sfondo poi possono essere più o meno conosciute, io le ignoravo quasi tutte, ma questo non mi ha impedito di apprezzarne le storie, anche se quello che più mi ha affascinato è la profondità che l'autrice infonde in questo personaggio, le sue molteplici sfaccettature, la sua introspezione costante ma sempre brutalmente sincera.
Per me un capolavoro.
Le vicende che fanno da sfondo poi possono essere più o meno conosciute, io le ignoravo quasi tutte, ma questo non mi ha impedito di apprezzarne le storie, anche se quello che più mi ha affascinato è la profondità che l'autrice infonde in questo personaggio, le sue molteplici sfaccettature, la sua introspezione costante ma sempre brutalmente sincera.
Per me un capolavoro.
Not sure why but I have been thinking about this book lately. I read it in 2007 while I was in Rome. I had finished all the books I bought to travel with so I found a bookstore with one row or so of English language book. I had just seen the Pantheon and thought "Oh the man who build it, let me read about him."
Well the book has more depth, emotion and insight than I expected, it has become a favorite I plan on re-reading soon.
Especially worth reading if you are interested in human insight of a leader but also the impact of romance, love on a man that has no peer. Also what it is like being a 'foreigner.' All in all just a great story of being human.
Well the book has more depth, emotion and insight than I expected, it has become a favorite I plan on re-reading soon.
Especially worth reading if you are interested in human insight of a leader but also the impact of romance, love on a man that has no peer. Also what it is like being a 'foreigner.' All in all just a great story of being human.