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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
informative
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Sexual content
emotional
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Despite wonderful, striking scenes and a fascinating story, the novel is disappointing for its often laborious narrative.
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Saramago é amado por uns e odiado por outros (Leia-se: pessoas que provavelmente nunca pegaram num livro na vida sem ser para a escola, e mesmo assim foi com muita força de vontade, baba e ranho, e que no caso deste, não devem ter passado da 10º página. Ou isso ou não sabem reconhecer um livro bom nem que um lhes mordesse o rabo.)
É tudo.
É tudo.
I usually like historical fiction that goes in depth, deviates off the given plot in order to embellish on historical aspects here and there. This however was a trial to finish. There was a little too much wandering, and not enough interesting details about the main characters themselves to merit paying attention. The religious cynicism agreed with me, but didn't offer any food for thought. Unfortunately, this book proved to be one that went in one ear and out the other without affecting much.
Having read Blindness by Saramago, I thought I had a sense of his writing style. This book challenged me. The story is fantastic. The characters are believable and mythical at the same time. The narrator is a storyteller to fall in love with. I was confused the whole way through the story. I loved it.
It is a real gift to weave history, legend, myth, drama and romance while being funny, ironic, skeptical, loving and kind. It is unlike any book I have ever read.
Set in Portugal in early 18th century, Baltasar is a wounded warrior that has lost his future when he lost his hand in battle. Blimunda gives him his future. The story uses the construction of the convent of Mafra to interweave the lives of royalty and their subjects. It is a pitiful story, but such is life. And believe it or not, you feel good when you are finished reading it.
It is a real gift to weave history, legend, myth, drama and romance while being funny, ironic, skeptical, loving and kind. It is unlike any book I have ever read.
Set in Portugal in early 18th century, Baltasar is a wounded warrior that has lost his future when he lost his hand in battle. Blimunda gives him his future. The story uses the construction of the convent of Mafra to interweave the lives of royalty and their subjects. It is a pitiful story, but such is life. And believe it or not, you feel good when you are finished reading it.
Sheer brilliance. In terms of an author toiling with honest description and putting heart and soul in the vacant word-bodies, here is a reading which without doubt makes the reader toil too, but one of the many rewards I received by reading it was a meeting with few of the most wonderful characters I have come across. The book ends brilliantly. Again, like most Saramago books, it ends to begin again. Marvellous.
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No