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Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez
114 reviews
tommy_g's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Incest, Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, and War
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Death, Pedophilia, Grief, Death of parent, Colonisation, and Pandemic/Epidemic
jonmayb's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
I read this book in Spanish, knowing that it would allow me to get the most out of it possible, and I certainly feel as though I did. This book could certainly be considered an incredible feat of literature, and I recognise its worthiness of the Nobel, but I don't think this was the right book for me. However, I will note, this is certainly a book I'll likely be able to get more out of on a reread.
Spanning six generations of the Buendía family, Gabriel García Marquez exhibits breathtaking world-building. Throughout approximately 500 pages of beautiful, although, at times annoyingly convoluted prose, the town of Macondo, from its establishment, to its dissipation, comes to feel real. Additionally, I found the themes of history repeating itself to be really compelling, as well as the terms of forgetfulness and belief. The part towards the end of the novel where Aureliano Babilonia is walking through Macondo only to find that to be particularly compelling. The prevalence of ghosts and spirits in this book, and their presence as something simply accepted, and not viewed as otherwordly also made for an interesting read. The reappearance of Melquíaldes and his scrolls throughout the work served as an interesting link between generations, as did the theme of solitude.
However, despite being able to recognise this work's merits, I found it to be a nearly unbearable read at times. While Gabriel García Marquez's prose was incredible, and I'm very grateful to have opted to read this work in Spanish, as I mentioned before, it was extremely convoluted at times. Sentences dragged on, changing topics and points of views multiple times within them. At one point, I found a sentence that lasted three and a half pages and had 992 words in it.
Nonetheless, I found this book to overly rely on the abuse of women as a plot device. While, unfortunately, domestic and sexual abuse was something common during this book's time period, the way García Marquez describes them leaves a lot to be desired; sexual abuse tends to be written quite light-heartedly, in a manner in which women are portrayed as becoming near accomplices in it.
Additionally, aside from the interesting points it touches upon, and the genuinely profound themes of forgetfulness, belief, and such, I found this book to feel mostly artificially profound. Many of the more absurd events were seemingly crafted to just require the reader to extract their own meaning from it. For example, when . Even in many reading guides I found, multiple interpretations were put forth, or otherwise didn't present an interpretation at all.
To be honest, I had to claw my way through this book. Even though I can recognise that it was written that way intentionally, I disliked how characters simply floated in and out of relevance. However, upon finishing it, struck by the novel's ending, all my feelings of dislike for the book got obscured. Reflecting upon the book, it's difficult to consider how I would rate it, even remembering how much I struggled to get though it.
Spanning six generations of the Buendía family, Gabriel García Marquez exhibits breathtaking world-building. Throughout approximately 500 pages of beautiful, although, at times annoyingly convoluted prose, the town of Macondo, from its establishment, to its dissipation, comes to feel real. Additionally, I found the themes of history repeating itself to be really compelling, as well as the terms of forgetfulness and belief. The part towards the end of the novel where Aureliano Babilonia is walking through Macondo only to find that to be particularly compelling. The prevalence of ghosts and spirits in this book, and their presence as something simply accepted, and not viewed as otherwordly also made for an interesting read. The reappearance of Melquíaldes and his scrolls throughout the work served as an interesting link between generations, as did the theme of solitude.
However, despite being able to recognise this work's merits, I found it to be a nearly unbearable read at times. While Gabriel García Marquez's prose was incredible, and I'm very grateful to have opted to read this work in Spanish, as I mentioned before, it was extremely convoluted at times. Sentences dragged on, changing topics and points of views multiple times within them. At one point, I found a sentence that lasted three and a half pages and had 992 words in it.
Nonetheless, I found this book to overly rely on the abuse of women as a plot device. While, unfortunately, domestic and sexual abuse was something common during this book's time period, the way García Marquez describes them leaves a lot to be desired; sexual abuse tends to be written quite light-heartedly, in a manner in which women are portrayed as becoming near accomplices in it.
Additionally, aside from the interesting points it touches upon, and the genuinely profound themes of forgetfulness, belief, and such, I found this book to feel mostly artificially profound. Many of the more absurd events were seemingly crafted to just require the reader to extract their own meaning from it. For example, when . Even in many reading guides I found, multiple interpretations were put forth, or otherwise didn't present an interpretation at all.
To be honest, I had to claw my way through this book. Even though I can recognise that it was written that way intentionally, I disliked how characters simply floated in and out of relevance. However, upon finishing it, struck by the novel's ending, all my feelings of dislike for the book got obscured. Reflecting upon the book, it's difficult to consider how I would rate it, even remembering how much I struggled to get though it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: War
sophie_trtr's review against another edition
J'ai apprécié la plume de Garcia Marquez, on sent qu'il écrit avec une rage très forte, il sait normaliser des sujets graves (de nombreux personnages meurent et leur décès est évacué en une phrase ), un peu trop à mon goût. Ce livre n'est pas pour moi, il y a beaucoup trop de trigger warnings pour que je puis apprécier ma lecture : inceste, pédophilie, sexualité, mort. Le lire était devenu une corvée, je passais certains passage et je n'étais plus investie.
Je comprends pourquoi beaucoup apprécient cette oeuvre, même si ce n'est pas mon cas.
Je comprends pourquoi beaucoup apprécient cette oeuvre, même si ce n'est pas mon cas.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Incest, and Sexual content
Moderate: Pedophilia and War
noteworthy_fiction's review against another edition
Problematic male/female "relationships" . Women are abused and or poorly portrayed
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Sexual content
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Pedophilia
zoezie's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I found the use of the same and similar names for most of the characters throughout the book confusing and hard to keep track of. I also found some of the content such as incest and sexual desire for children uncomfortable to read about. There are things to enjoy in this book and as I was reading I felt like if it ended after the first quarter I would have rated it highly. I found myself losing interest in the middle and almost gave up, but then I found the end interesting as well and enjoyed the way it was wrapped up. It’s difficult for me to say whether I like this book or not, but I don’t think I would want to read it again personally
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest and Pedophilia
Moderate: Sexual content, Violence, and War
calistahs's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
a lot of people with a lot of solitude
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Gun violence, Incest, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: War
zendthyl's review against another edition
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Genocide, Gun violence, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Police brutality, Dementia, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail
bootrat's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I found this book to be a very strange read. At times I loved it, and at times I found it completely indecipherable and very hard going. I lost track of which character was which, which time period we were in, and where we were within the story quite frequently. However I found it really interesting and intriguing.
I think the fact that I listened to the audiobook made it even more confusing, as I couldn't flick back to previous pages when I lost the thread of the story.
Overall I think I enjoyed this book, but it was quite confusing. I may come back to it and try reading a physical copy, as I think it has potential to be a book I really like.
I think the fact that I listened to the audiobook made it even more confusing, as I couldn't flick back to previous pages when I lost the thread of the story.
Overall I think I enjoyed this book, but it was quite confusing. I may come back to it and try reading a physical copy, as I think it has potential to be a book I really like.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Xenophobia, and War
Minor: Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, Dementia, and Colonisation
dolly_rocker's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
You have to be up for a challenge to read this book, but wow, is it worth it. I think listening to the audiobook helps a lot, as the narrator is fantastic.
While I have some quibbles with the content, the overall themes that this book explores, about the circular nature of time and the impact of solitude, are masterfully explored through beautiful writing. It’s hard to keep up with so many characters who have the same name, and their stories are told in ways that are often not linear, and yet this approach helps you to realize that the way one character perceives an event is quite different from how others perceive it. And so the events or actions thought by some to be magical could really be magic, or they could just be folklore, passed down through generations or perceived through secondhand knowledge.
I couldn’t stop reading this book and wanting to know what happened to these characters, even though none of them were particularly likable. They were all interesting, and gosh, Fernanda and her ranting will linger in my mind for a long time.
While I have some quibbles with the content, the overall themes that this book explores, about the circular nature of time and the impact of solitude, are masterfully explored through beautiful writing. It’s hard to keep up with so many characters who have the same name, and their stories are told in ways that are often not linear, and yet this approach helps you to realize that the way one character perceives an event is quite different from how others perceive it. And so the events or actions thought by some to be magical could really be magic, or they could just be folklore, passed down through generations or perceived through secondhand knowledge.
I couldn’t stop reading this book and wanting to know what happened to these characters, even though none of them were particularly likable. They were all interesting, and gosh, Fernanda and her ranting will linger in my mind for a long time.
Content Warnings
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Racial slurs, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and War
natgeographic's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, Death, Incest, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Sexual content, and War
Minor: Child abuse and Dementia