Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I think approaching this with the lens of it being a seminal work of magical realism did really enhance the experience for me, and I can definitely see why people enjoy it so much The way the characters fall into continuing cycles and repetitions, and the way solitude warps the perspective of both the characters and the narrative are really interesting and well done However, I found it a bit of a slog to get through, particularly in the middle section. I also did find the name repetition confusing - I'm thinking about rereading at a later date and would definitely have to take some notes.
"Upset by two nostalgias facing each other like two mirrors, he lost his marvellous sense of unreality and he ended up recommending to all of them that they leave Macondo, that they forget everything he had taught them about the world and the human heart... and that wherever they might be they always remember that the past was a lie, that memory has no return, that every spring gone by could never be recovered, and that the wildest and most tenacious love was an ephemeral truth in the end."
This book is something magical, truly, and not just because it was a pioneer of the magical realism genre. Following generation after generation of this family and everything they saw, did, and experienced, even when I didn't like them, made me so attached. Many of them feel larger than life, feel so much like real political figures or benchmarks of humanity that when they would die I would have to put the book down and give myself space to reconcile it with myself. I realise that might make me sound psychotic but so be it; such is the power of truly great literature.
I don't have the words to describe what this book made me think and feel, how it made me see the world differently, and how it broke my heart countless times. Even if I did, no words that I could type here would do my exact thoughts and feelings justice. The only way to understand the impact this book can have on a person is to experience it yourself, and if you do I truly hope it moves you as much as it did me.
What an absolute triumph of a novel. Realistic and yet fantastical, moving and yet mundane, larger than life and yet always entirely and innately human. If I had to recommend one book to describe what it is to be human, I think it would have to be this one.
This book is something magical, truly, and not just because it was a pioneer of the magical realism genre. Following generation after generation of this family and everything they saw, did, and experienced, even when I didn't like them, made me so attached. Many of them feel larger than life, feel so much like real political figures or benchmarks of humanity that when they would die I would have to put the book down and give myself space to reconcile it with myself. I realise that might make me sound psychotic but so be it; such is the power of truly great literature.
I don't have the words to describe what this book made me think and feel, how it made me see the world differently, and how it broke my heart countless times. Even if I did, no words that I could type here would do my exact thoughts and feelings justice. The only way to understand the impact this book can have on a person is to experience it yourself, and if you do I truly hope it moves you as much as it did me.
What an absolute triumph of a novel. Realistic and yet fantastical, moving and yet mundane, larger than life and yet always entirely and innately human. If I had to recommend one book to describe what it is to be human, I think it would have to be this one.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
He estado siete días viviendo en Macondo. He sentido la soledad, he visto generaciones ir y venir y he llorado durante capítulos enteros. No creo que tenga palabras para expresar cómo me siento después de leer Cien años de soledad.
Maravillosa obra maestra.
Maravillosa obra maestra.
"The tone that I eventually used in "One Hundred Years of Solitude" was based on the way my grandmother used to tell stories . . . In previous attempts to write, I tried to tell the story without believing in it. I discovered that what I had to do was believe in them myself and write them with the same expression with which my grandmother told them: with a brick face" (García Márquez).
The book reads like a history and a fantastical story all in one. He does, indeed, keep a straight face, coming up with more absurd things that still breathe with the air of reality. Re-reads like this are interesting because you know what to expect, but it still surprises you. Another thing I caught this time around: I think the author wrote himself into the final chapter. He's not there much, but he's there all the same.
(May 2025)
The book reads like a history and a fantastical story all in one. He does, indeed, keep a straight face, coming up with more absurd things that still breathe with the air of reality. Re-reads like this are interesting because you know what to expect, but it still surprises you. Another thing I caught this time around: I think the author wrote himself into the final chapter. He's not there much, but he's there all the same.
(May 2025)
Mieleen jäi lähinnä kysymys "miksi tässä oli niin paljon insestiä?"
As much fun as it would've been to say 'yeah I've read the greatest novel ever written no big deal 💅🏽'... I am also bored to tears and life is too short to be spent slogging through books that you're not enjoying.
Dnf @ 20%
Dnf @ 20%
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes