Reviews with content warning for Sexism - Cem Anos de Solidão

this book has amazing commentary and makes great points but it was boring and read like a string of facts from a very detached narrator

more like 100 years of incest

Content Warnings

leonormsousa's review against another edition

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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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maddyschue's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective slow-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

3.0

3/5 stars

This wad a one time read for me, but worth it to read once. It was a very slow at times but quite interesting at times too. It is an early magical realism novel that delves deep into relationships, human nature, how history repeats itself, solitude, progress, family, and civilization. It follows the Buendía family through seven generations starting when José builds a utopian, very isolated city in the middle of a swamp in Colombia. The writing is very beautiful and the setting is described with great detail. The story gets kind of complicated and a lot of characters have the same/similar names so that was a little confusing at times. But I liked how the author really developed the characters and showed the connections of everyone.

< SPOILER BELOW >

Rip like every character in the Buendía you meet, they all go through some hell.

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lucubrate's review against another edition

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challenging emotional 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

5.0

You have to be up for a challenge to read this book, but wow, is it worth it. I think listening to the audiobook helps a lot, as the narrator is fantastic.

While I have some quibbles with the content, the overall themes that this book explores, about the circular nature of time and the impact of solitude, are masterfully explored through beautiful writing. It’s hard to keep up with so many characters who have the same name, and their stories are told in ways that are often not linear, and yet this approach helps you to realize that the way one character perceives an event is quite different from how others perceive it. And so the events or actions thought by some to be magical could really be magic, or they could just be folklore, passed down through generations or perceived through secondhand knowledge.

I couldn’t stop reading this book and wanting to know what happened to these characters, even though none of them were particularly likable. They were all interesting, and gosh, Fernanda and her ranting will linger in my mind for a long time.

Content Warnings

mosca's review against another edition

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dark 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? No

0.75

Livre utile dans la compréhension d’un certain pays à une certaine époque, mais difficile à apprécier à l’époque actuelle.

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borninexile's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense 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? Yes

4.75

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