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serendipitysbooks's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I read this classic from the Phillippines in a slow but steady fashion over the course of three weeks as part of a group readalong organised by @ktlee.writes and @booknerdkat. They did a great job and I’m grateful for their efforts. It’s not a book I’d have picked up - or even known existed - had it not been for the readalong.
Noli Me Tangere is set during the Spanish colonial period and looks at issues such as race, class, gender, religion and governmental power, all within the context of nineteenth century colonialism. There was a large cast of characters to become familiar with and the novel was a bit of a slow burn at first, but the ending was action-packed. The power historically utilised - and abused - by the Catholic Church never ceases to surprise me and it’s depiction in this book was no exception. So much arrogance and malevolence by the priests. The book did an excellent job highlighting the economic, social and political issues in the Phillippines during the colonial period and showed how difficult it was to institute change due to opposition from entrenched interests. I love learning about different parts of the world through fiction and this classic certainly delivered.
Noli Me Tangere is set during the Spanish colonial period and looks at issues such as race, class, gender, religion and governmental power, all within the context of nineteenth century colonialism. There was a large cast of characters to become familiar with and the novel was a bit of a slow burn at first, but the ending was action-packed. The power historically utilised - and abused - by the Catholic Church never ceases to surprise me and it’s depiction in this book was no exception. So much arrogance and malevolence by the priests. The book did an excellent job highlighting the economic, social and political issues in the Phillippines during the colonial period and showed how difficult it was to institute change due to opposition from entrenched interests. I love learning about different parts of the world through fiction and this classic certainly delivered.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Colonisation, Death, and Torture
carolshere's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Torture, and Child abuse
Minor: Rape
dean_issov's review
challenging
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I feel that it's important to note that this book is a highly respected and revolutionary book from where I come from, the Philippines; Dr. José Rizal is our national hero and my subjective criticisms toward this book shouldn't be taken as a fact, definitely still read this book if you're interested in reading the book that sparked a revolution in my country, there is an English translation of it called "The Social Cancer" if you're not fluent in Tagalog/Spanish.
Noli Me Tangere is and will always be the book that all Filipinos will study in schools/colleges, but I had the luxury to read it not by my school's demand but just for my pleasure alone. This book definitely inspired many of the teleseryes (television soap operas) that I grew up watching. I can't confidently say that I had the best reading experience with this book, I was crawling my way through the first half and felt ashamed that I had to resort to the audiobook version throughout the latter half of the book, but I know that I had to finish this no matter what it took because of just how monumental this book was. I just didnt connect with the characters that much, I felt like the main character was a nice man but never really fully developed as a character, and the same goes to all the others in the book. I still can't help but feel sorry for the poor mother, Sisa, who had, in my opinion, the most tragic story.
I'm not going to spoil anything so you should definitely read it for yourself. My take on this book is that it just wasn't for me, it felt slow and there were many "fillers" inbetween the main events of the book, perhaps I'll read this again when I'm older and have a new perspective on it.
Noli Me Tangere is and will always be the book that all Filipinos will study in schools/colleges, but I had the luxury to read it not by my school's demand but just for my pleasure alone. This book definitely inspired many of the teleseryes (television soap operas) that I grew up watching. I can't confidently say that I had the best reading experience with this book, I was crawling my way through the first half and felt ashamed that I had to resort to the audiobook version throughout the latter half of the book, but I know that I had to finish this no matter what it took because of just how monumental this book was. I just didnt connect with the characters that much, I felt like the main character was a nice man but never really fully developed as a character, and the same goes to all the others in the book. I still can't help but feel sorry for the poor mother, Sisa, who had, in my opinion, the most tragic story.
I'm not going to spoil anything so you should definitely read it for yourself. My take on this book is that it just wasn't for me, it felt slow and there were many "fillers" inbetween the main events of the book, perhaps I'll read this again when I'm older and have a new perspective on it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, War, and Racism
elly29's review
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
What a convoluted trip into the makings of a failed revolutionary in 19th-century Philippines. It reminds me simultaneously of 100 Years of Solitude (without the playful magic) and Of Human Bondage (though not as grim). I learned a lot about the Philippines -- in the intro, especially, the translator talked about the "friarocracy" and the stranglehold Catholic friars held over the country, insomuch that there was a group of friars that ordered the assassination of Fernando Bustamante, the Spanish governor of the Philippines, in 1719. (Though, this takes place in the 1880s/1890s.)
At times terribly boring, at times exciting (like the courting young folks' boat ride that ended with the death of the crocodile), at times viscerally awful as they torture and kill revolutionaries without any semblance of justice, it waxes satirical and philosophical and polemical. (Old Tasio was among the best parts of this book.) There was no end to how much it harped on the injustices church and government heaped upon common folks. What an odd novel. Apparently, Rizal is some sort of phantom invoked as a national hero/bogeyman/Santa Claus in the Philippines.
Yikes, child physical abuse that ends in the child's disappearance. It gives me sadness to think that this is a story that has happened over and over and over throughout the world. Those mass graves of children next to old schools in Canada...
What an appropriate novel for 2021, as the world is still dealing with the effects of colonialism.
Oddly enough, I'd be interested in a tv miniseries about Noli Me T'angere.
Special thanks to TheStoryGraph's Literature-in-Translation challenge. I would've passed over this book otherwise.
A few good quotes:
"The furniture is elegant, if uncomfortable and not suited to the climate; the owner of the house would never put his guests' health before luxury. 'Dysentery is terrible, but you are sitting in European chairs, which you don't get to so every day!' he would tell them." (p 7)
"The rich and affluent have fulfilled the duties that come with having a fortune. The following day they will hear the three masses every priest will celebrate, give two pesos for another, and purchase a bull for the dead, full of indulgences. In faith, divine justice is nowhere near as demanding as human justice."
At times terribly boring, at times exciting (like the courting young folks' boat ride that ended with the death of the crocodile), at times viscerally awful as they torture and kill revolutionaries without any semblance of justice, it waxes satirical and philosophical and polemical. (Old Tasio was among the best parts of this book.) There was no end to how much it harped on the injustices church and government heaped upon common folks. What an odd novel. Apparently, Rizal is some sort of phantom invoked as a national hero/bogeyman/Santa Claus in the Philippines.
Yikes, child physical abuse that ends in the child's disappearance. It gives me sadness to think that this is a story that has happened over and over and over throughout the world. Those mass graves of children next to old schools in Canada...
What an appropriate novel for 2021, as the world is still dealing with the effects of colonialism.
Oddly enough, I'd be interested in a tv miniseries about Noli Me T'angere.
Special thanks to TheStoryGraph's Literature-in-Translation challenge. I would've passed over this book otherwise.
A few good quotes:
"The furniture is elegant, if uncomfortable and not suited to the climate; the owner of the house would never put his guests' health before luxury. 'Dysentery is terrible, but you are sitting in European chairs, which you don't get to so every day!' he would tell them." (p 7)
"The rich and affluent have fulfilled the duties that come with having a fortune. The following day they will hear the three masses every priest will celebrate, give two pesos for another, and purchase a bull for the dead, full of indulgences. In faith, divine justice is nowhere near as demanding as human justice."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Colonisation
Moderate: Torture, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Physical abuse, and Death of parent
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