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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
While I don't necessarily agree with Saramago's message, I believe he got it across quite clearly. The blindness is much more than physical blindness; the physical epidemic only elucidated the blindness many of us view the world through. This quickly descended into a Lord of the Flies type scenario...
Saramago's style is certainly interesting and difficult to read at times, but I found it worked here. The strangely written dialogue almost made me feel like I was blind myself because I'd be working to figure out who was talking and where they were by these disjointed bits of speech.
Overall, I enjoyed it, even if some parts may have seemed unrealistic. It's a fast-paced read and not a comfortable one -- I'd recommend it, but not for a cozy evening by the fire.
Saramago's style is certainly interesting and difficult to read at times, but I found it worked here. The strangely written dialogue almost made me feel like I was blind myself because I'd be working to figure out who was talking and where they were by these disjointed bits of speech.
Overall, I enjoyed it, even if some parts may have seemed unrealistic. It's a fast-paced read and not a comfortable one -- I'd recommend it, but not for a cozy evening by the fire.
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
Esperaba mucho más. Es un libro tupico de distopia que intenta abarcar temas y mostrar la naturaleza humana, pero se pierde en los detalles. Saramago se enfoca demasiado en explicar lo terrible que es estar ciego y como las personas cambian con eso. Pero se queda en lo superficial y no explora las emociones que lleva todo. Es un libro que la primera mitad es entretenida pero después se vuelve muy reiterativo. Siento que él usa mucho la descripción de lo asqueroso para generar shock pero ya hay un punto en el se vuelve monótono y se siente que el man no sabía qué más escribir y la gran tesis del libro es que los ciegos no saben ser limpios y todo es una porquería. La simbología a pesar de estar ahí no se explota lo suficiente ni son alegorías totalmente claras. Tenía mucho potencial pero paila no me gustó casi. Esas últimas 100 páginas fueron una tortura leerlas. Todo mal
The popular tik tok trend of "It is so bad I want to give you a zero but that's not possible so I give you a one" comes to mind. Written with zero punctuation, disregard for women and unnecessary violence it's not one I'll be reading again. If it wasn't for my bookclub I'd have put it down a long time ago.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
dark
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Rape, Excrement, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail
Love it or hate it, this book will stick with you for a very long time.
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Well, it's an interesting time to have read this one! About an epidemic of blindness. Though I think we'd maybe call it a pandemic in these times. Dark, thought provoking and asks a lot of questions about human behavior in dire circumstances, the best and worst of it. I feel like in real life, we've acted more collectively but it's still pretty depressing, having read this.