Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

Seratus Tahun Kesunyian by Gabriel García Márquez

61 reviews

leonormsousa's review against another edition

challenging 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

3.5

Overall opinion: I liked it. I didn't love it like I thought I would, but I honestly think the way I read it also had quite a big impact on my experience and final opinion.

I took two weeks and a half to read this book, which is quite a lot for me, and I think that stopped me from feeling fully immersed in the story.

On the other end, the misogyny (and incest) didn't sit well with me. I recognise that it might make sense given the context but nonetheless, I can't help but feel that there were unnecessary parts that could have been handled better. And even with the context, it made me feel uncomfortable and that's something that always stains my reading experience. 

I feel like I need to justify myself because I know this is the favourite of so many (and because it was a direct rec from someone that means so much to me). I especially feel like I need to talk about what I didn't like because what I liked it's quite obvious.

Gabriel Gracía Márquez writes in a wonderful and quirky way. He's an excellent storyteller that knows how to make a message come to life in the form of a narrative. His mastery of magical realism is indisputable.

I guess this was more of a me problem. I feel like I failed to see the big picture and the whole thing fell short to me. The good news is: I can't stop thinking about how a reread in a couple of years will likely become a much more enjoyable experience. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Grief, Pedophilia, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, War, Abandonment, Child death, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Confinement, Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Vomit, Body shaming, Child abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Murder, Animal death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Death, Death of parent, and Violence

b_austridge's review against another edition

challenging slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Incest, and Police brutality

seanml's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I'll probably have to read One Hundred Years of Solitude in a decade or two to really understand it. The book's doses of magical realism and a very spacey flowery prose, instead of creating something more fantastical, make the story much more intimate and human. This doesn't distract at all from the bloody murders, strange incest, or sexual assault. The main family we follow is not made up of good people, but they're not supposed to be either way. They are just people going through time. 7/10.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death

Moderate: Death, Stalking, Adult/minor relationship, Murder, Death of parent, Gun violence, Pregnancy, Violence, War, Incest, and Infidelity

Minor: Ableism, Antisemitism, Confinement, Colonisation, Abandonment, and Sexual assault

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.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Xenophobia, Adult/minor relationship, Incest, and War

Minor: Death, Dementia, Racism, Colonisation, Gun violence, Mental illness, and Sexual content

another_dahlia's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Loveable characters? It's complicated

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Infidelity, Racism, Colonisation, Gun violence, Incest, Grief, and Domestic abuse

moss_005's review against another edition

adventurous challenging 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Genocide, Incest, War, and Colonisation

Moderate: Infidelity and Sexual content

Minor: Pedophilia

eliss02's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I've read this for an university exam, I despised it so much it made me sick a few times but I constantly think about it. Despite me disliking this book it was one of those I've printed on my mind.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Misogyny, Gun violence, Mental illness, Violence, War, Death, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Animal death, Blood, Child death, Colonisation, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Cursing, Dementia, and Incest

Moderate: Infidelity

prlaw1517's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

A masterpiece of writing—the writing was so good even the questionable bits didn’t stop me from enjoying the novel. Fascinating circular plot, it’s like reading a secular Genesis. Learned more about Colombian history as well. The only “downside” is that because this book inspired a generation of magical realism, sometimes it feels “tropey”. But these are where the tropes originated, so I give it a pass.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship and Pedophilia

Moderate: Colonisation and Cultural appropriation

Minor: Suicide

gabyyinz's review against another edition

challenging reflective tense fast-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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Cursing, Incest, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, Child death, Infidelity, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Rape, Suicide attempt, War, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, and Alcohol

Moderate: Genocide, Infertility, Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Forced institutionalization, Animal cruelty, Miscarriage, Sexual violence, Body horror, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Dementia, and Misogyny

shainalite's review

challenging medium-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

5.0

my all time favorite book

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Pregnancy, Blood, Excrement, Pedophilia, Death of parent, Murder, Incest, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Abandonment, Animal death, Colonisation, Death, Dementia, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Police brutality, Mass/school shootings, Violence, and Vomit