Scan barcode
karabeta's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
oliviadobrea's review against another edition
5.0
Beautiful story that binds the myths and the history events around the construction of a fictional bridge in a 12th century Albania, written by the hand of an observing and insightful monk.
ajkhn's review against another edition
3.0
I love Kadare but I found this book kind of...mechanical? It was weird and spooky, but not particular edifying, and the Looming Ottoman trope is not very effective on me, an Ottoman lover.
The book explicitly references Doruntine, which is a much better book! It was kind of a bummer, like, "oh right, I could instead be reading a much better book that shares much of these themes."
The book explicitly references Doruntine, which is a much better book! It was kind of a bummer, like, "oh right, I could instead be reading a much better book that shares much of these themes."
veessa's review against another edition
4.0
Nothing beats historical fiction as a genre, and no one beats Ismail Kadare in writing Albanian historical fiction. At the core of this novel is, yet again, a legend which is altered to fit the interests of people. The narrator is, of course, a literate, well-respected monk, who happens to be based on a real person, Gjon Buzuku.
In 1555 Buzuku wrote the first documented book in Albanian (not the first document); in Kadare’s novel, however, he is writing the chronicle of the three-arched bridge, so that the readers get an accurate account of how it was built. Written between 1976 and 1978, this account that our narrator was writing on paper, because the story would be in danger if it weren’t written down, mirrors the unpleasant years for writers and journalists in Albania during the communist regime. Accepting the fact that he might become a sacrifice for the chronicle’s survival, Gjon writes and shares the bitter story of the three-arched bridge. And I loved every bit of it.
In 1555 Buzuku wrote the first documented book in Albanian (not the first document); in Kadare’s novel, however, he is writing the chronicle of the three-arched bridge, so that the readers get an accurate account of how it was built. Written between 1976 and 1978, this account that our narrator was writing on paper, because the story would be in danger if it weren’t written down, mirrors the unpleasant years for writers and journalists in Albania during the communist regime. Accepting the fact that he might become a sacrifice for the chronicle’s survival, Gjon writes and shares the bitter story of the three-arched bridge. And I loved every bit of it.
hafable's review
dark
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
this was for sociology and it was just okay. There is not a lot to it that pulled my attention; it really did center around the building of a bridge and the effect it had on the people near it and I didn't really care for it.
csolomon1983's review against another edition
2.0
I was really looking forward to reading something by Kadare, but was disappointed by this book. I expected more out of his promised style of magical realism, but instead got a dreary book that failed to capture my imagination.
mihai_cristinam's review against another edition
2.0
Sincer, mi se pare ca autorul a pus accentul pe trei subiecte, a vorbit despre toate trei, dar toate trei au fost dezvoltate ambiguu, pe fuga, si de fapt nu am inteles nimic din niciunul :). Partea politica nu m-a interesat, istoria zonei respective nu o cunosc si mai mult m-a incurcat, iar legeda este foarte similara cu a lui Manole, deci o stiam. Da, sunt rea :))).
Sunt o pasionata de istorie, dar aici am detestat-o. A fost partea care mi-a ingreunat lectura, care m-a plictisit si pe care nu am inteles-o. Am inteles doar ca Imperiul Otoman a cucerit Albania la final. The end :).
De la mine a primit doar 2 stelute, nu stiu daca voi reveni la Kadare prea curand, desi este un autor extrem de laudat. Daca acesta este stilul pe care il utilizeaza in romanele lui, pot doar sa spun ca m-a obosit. Norc ca au fost capitole scurte si cartea a fost relativ usor de citit.
Pana data viitoare :)!
Sunt o pasionata de istorie, dar aici am detestat-o. A fost partea care mi-a ingreunat lectura, care m-a plictisit si pe care nu am inteles-o. Am inteles doar ca Imperiul Otoman a cucerit Albania la final. The end :).
De la mine a primit doar 2 stelute, nu stiu daca voi reveni la Kadare prea curand, desi este un autor extrem de laudat. Daca acesta este stilul pe care il utilizeaza in romanele lui, pot doar sa spun ca m-a obosit. Norc ca au fost capitole scurte si cartea a fost relativ usor de citit.
Pana data viitoare :)!
gobblebook's review against another edition
4.0
Fascinating and enigmatic and strange. Kadare really draws you in, and the book is full of a dark sense of foreboding and a man's helplessness in the face of huge historical forces. I'm not sure I quite understand the full extent of the allegory meant by the bridge. The clearest thing I could draw out of it is the feeling of helplessness, of only being able to sit and watch and be baffled by the unfolding of history.
bespectacled's review
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
It's fitting that a bridge is the main setting, character, and metaphor of this book. "The Three-Arched Bridge" is about in-between spaces -- bridging life and death, Europe and Asia, treachery and loyalty, legend and history, construction and destruction. When you see someone standing in the middle of a bridge, you cannot be sure which side they are coming from or going to. In a similar way, this book balances you between legend and history, telling the tale of the binding of a river that mirrors the tale of the binding of a nation.