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dijae's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
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? N/A
4.25
This was a very challenging and beautifully woven novel. I had to read this book a little differently, constantly going back to the previous pages and feeling scattered, disjointed throughout. The novel took me on a similar journey as its scarcely engaged narrator as he struggled to not only find but experience the life of his father. Through Juan and the people of Media Luna, we navigate grief, abandonment, religious guilt etc through a multitude of characters stuck in their own purgatory. Are they alive or dead? Is this before Juan's arrival, during Pedro's youth or a completely different timeline? I had so many questions while I was reading some answered some not but yeah I loved this and definitely need to reread!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Abandonment
not_another_ana's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-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? It's complicated
3.5
Vine a Comala porque me dijeron que acá vivía mi padre, un tal Pedro Páramo.
En su lecho de muerte la madre de Juan Preciado le hace prometer que irá a Comala, el pueblo de donde son oriundos, a buscar a su padre Pedro Páramo. Una vez que llega al pueblo, encuentra un caserío vacío, donde lo único que habita las deterioradas casas son ecos de sus habitantes, almas en pena que vagan por los lugares donde alguna vez hicieron vida.
Lo que sigue es un encuentro entre la vida y la muerte, donde poco a poco se va desplegando la historia de Pedro Páramo y Comala desde las experiencias de los pobladores y conocidos. Es una narración muy interesante, que requiere mucha atención a los detalles pero que, al mismo tiempo, es envolvente y apetecible. Invita al lector a dejarse ir, a experimentar el momento igual que Juan Preciado.
¿Qué la entendí toda? Probablemente no, se me escapan ciertas particularidades culturales e históricas de México, pero al mismo tiempo estoy en paz con la lectura que hice y siento que posiblemente algún día yo también vuelva a Comala.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Incest
Minor: Rape
leannanecdote's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Bullying, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Sexual harassment, and War
tof's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest and Grief
eliss02's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I've read this book for an university exam so it was a "forced" read. It was definitely an EXPERIENCE
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Colonisation
vita_ayala's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Moody and contemplative, as a good ghost story should be.
The format is almost dream-like, which is onteresting to read and adds to the tension I think.
The format is almost dream-like, which is onteresting to read and adds to the tension I think.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Trafficking, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
We lose the thread of the son somewhere in the middle, which I think ultimately makes this too loose of a story.malustedile's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Incest, Mental illness, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Grief
morning_sky's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Violence, and War
ohlhauc's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
The premise starts with Juan Preciado going to the town of Comala as a promise to his recently deceased mother in an attempt to find his father but what he finds is a ghost town. Not just a town that is abandoned but a town that is literally filled with the ghosts and spirits of the people who lived there. What follows is Juan hearing these different ghost voices talking about what happened in the town, and who his father was.
This was an absolutely disorienting read and yet so memorable, visceral, and inescapable. I couldn't put it down. It is a book that needs to be read by anyone with an interest in ghost stories, magic realism, spirit worlds, town collapse, boss stories, classics, post-revolutionary stories, or Mexican literature.
What you need to know, though, is to just go with the flow. Read it without trying to figure out who all the characters are or trying to piece together the timeline of what's happening. While there are strings in the plot to tie moments together, the story jumps between different timelines and different voices, and it's not always clear who's speaking. The author left gaps and asks the reader to actively engage with the text and fill in the rest of the story as they see fit. Usually I'm not a huge fan of that style but here it works. The author gives you just enough to feel bonded with the characters and to want to find out why Comala is a ghost town, but the exercise in your own imagination makes each read and re-read a new and exciting experience. This is definitely a book to re-read, each time learning things you missed or finding new ways to understand what happened.
You will be confused at points but embrace it. You will be frustrated at some of the characters but embrace it. You will feel creeped out and torn and stomped on but embrace it.
This is a classic and deservedly so. I recommend it without reservation.
This was an absolutely disorienting read and yet so memorable, visceral, and inescapable. I couldn't put it down. It is a book that needs to be read by anyone with an interest in ghost stories, magic realism, spirit worlds, town collapse, boss stories, classics, post-revolutionary stories, or Mexican literature.
What you need to know, though, is to just go with the flow. Read it without trying to figure out who all the characters are or trying to piece together the timeline of what's happening. While there are strings in the plot to tie moments together, the story jumps between different timelines and different voices, and it's not always clear who's speaking. The author left gaps and asks the reader to actively engage with the text and fill in the rest of the story as they see fit. Usually I'm not a huge fan of that style but here it works. The author gives you just enough to feel bonded with the characters and to want to find out why Comala is a ghost town, but the exercise in your own imagination makes each read and re-read a new and exciting experience. This is definitely a book to re-read, each time learning things you missed or finding new ways to understand what happened.
You will be confused at points but embrace it. You will be frustrated at some of the characters but embrace it. You will feel creeped out and torn and stomped on but embrace it.
This is a classic and deservedly so. I recommend it without reservation.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Rape, Violence, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Animal death, Terminal illness, and Death of parent
aegagrus's review against another edition
3.25
[re-read for class, not a full review]
Rulfo's sparse prose and magical realism are gripping and compelling, but a substantial part of their appeal is in their ambiguity. Once the story develops to a point at which the reader understands the rules of the world in which we're operating, the novel loses steam, in part because it is no longer as ambiguous. At heart this is a collection of stories and memories lived by different people at different times, and some are more compelling than others. Fr. Rentería is particularly compelling and interesting, in part because his story implicates the broader themes drawing the novel together in a quite nuanced way. Other stories and characters feel somewhat more peripheral.
Rulfo's sparse prose and magical realism are gripping and compelling, but a substantial part of their appeal is in their ambiguity. Once the story develops to a point at which the reader understands the rules of the world in which we're operating, the novel loses steam, in part because it is no longer as ambiguous. At heart this is a collection of stories and memories lived by different people at different times, and some are more compelling than others. Fr. Rentería is particularly compelling and interesting, in part because his story implicates the broader themes drawing the novel together in a quite nuanced way. Other stories and characters feel somewhat more peripheral.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Incest, Mental illness, Rape, Suicide, Grief, and Murder