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kellysparks's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Incest
bbqcandy's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-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? Yes
5.0
Its easy to see why Cien Años De Soledad is considered a classic. The timeless themes of family dynamics and the cyclical nature of time, combined with the pseudo-historical nature of the book and the hint of mysterious magic make this an absolute must read for anyone interested in hispanic and latino literature.
Though the book can be very challenging and confusing, this often serves as a way to further the themes of the book. I’ve heard others complain that they can get confused by all the characters that share names, but this is quite purposeful in the book,especially as you find out that the characters that share names, also share personalities and even their ultimate fates.
The other, often confusing and major theme in the book is the cyclical nature of time. Much of the book is written in a way where the passage of time is hard to discern. Many sections are written as flashbacks, some segments are written as flashforwards, and overall the book is written in a way that almost feels as if every event is happening at one. At the end of the book, it is revealed that Melquiades’ manuscript is actually the book we are reading, that he wrote at the start of the 100 years, predicting everything that happens and writing everything as if it occurred all at once.
For me personally, the hardest challenge of this book was reading through it in the original Spanish. I have been a Spanish-speaker my whole life, but most of my education took place in the USA, so I never got the chance to read many books in Spanish, especially more challenging and academic books. I do not regret reading this in Spanish. Marquez’s words and rhythms add a deeper layer to this book that makes it so much more rich and often beautiful in a tragic way. That said, I do wish I had read other, simpler books in Spanish as practice, in order to work myself up to reading this one. I don’t think my lack of skill took much away from my experience reading this, but it did take me a long time to get through it.
I could talk about this book for hours, but this review is getting long, and I’m writing on the clock at work, but I will just say that this is an incredible book written by a very talented author and I would frankly recommend to anyone, especially if they are interested in hispanic literature and history.
Though the book can be very challenging and confusing, this often serves as a way to further the themes of the book. I’ve heard others complain that they can get confused by all the characters that share names, but this is quite purposeful in the book,
The other, often confusing and major theme in the book is the cyclical nature of time. Much of the book is written in a way where the passage of time is hard to discern. Many sections are written as flashbacks, some segments are written as flashforwards, and overall the book is written in a way that almost feels as if every event is happening at one.
For me personally, the hardest challenge of this book was reading through it in the original Spanish. I have been a Spanish-speaker my whole life, but most of my education took place in the USA, so I never got the chance to read many books in Spanish, especially more challenging and academic books. I do not regret reading this in Spanish. Marquez’s words and rhythms add a deeper layer to this book that makes it so much more rich and often beautiful in a tragic way. That said, I do wish I had read other, simpler books in Spanish as practice, in order to work myself up to reading this one. I don’t think my lack of skill took much away from my experience reading this, but it did take me a long time to get through it.
I could talk about this book for hours, but this review is getting long, and I’m writing on the clock at work, but I will just say that this is an incredible book written by a very talented author and I would frankly recommend to anyone, especially if they are interested in hispanic literature and history.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Child death, Self harm, Suicide, and Murder
Minor: Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Death of parent, and War
lydia_rose's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, and War
tsedorable's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-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
3.0
The Buendía men make George Foreman look like a joke lol. Seventeen sons with the same name?? And why are these men marrying literal children. 🤢
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Sexual content, Violence, and War
waluigi123's review against another edition
challenging
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Sexual content, Violence, and War
sylviafey's review against another edition
Unfortunately, I had to DNF this book. I just couldn't get into it and was about 4 hours into the audiobook when I stopped. I give books a little while to catch and hold my interest but this one couldn't. I found my mind wandering and thinking of reading something else. One thing I did discover was I can't handle slow paced books, anymore. I used to be able to power through them, but my tolerance has gone down since I was a teen. It actually made me a little sad but it is what it is. I hope other people enjoy it more than I did, it just wasn't for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest and Sexual assault
kistlca's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest and Pedophilia
Moderate: Violence and War
kglm1022's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, and Violence
mantha625's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Loveable characters? No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Incest, Sexual assault, and Violence
mabi29's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Não sei como ficou tão famosa...a história é bem mais ou menos, e ao longo do tempo vamos esquecendo quem é quem, por que os personagens tem os mesmos nomes. Além disso há normalização de coisas como sexo com menores e incesto que me incomodou bastante.
Bom que foi audiolivro pq se tivesse tentado ler o físico não teria aguentado.
Bom que foi audiolivro pq se tivesse tentado ler o físico não teria aguentado.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Incest