One Hundred Years of Solitude (Spanish: Cien años de soledad, American Spanish: [sjen ˈaɲoz ðe soleˈðað]) is a landmark 1967 novel by Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez that tells the multi-generational story of the Buendía family, whose patriarch, José Arcadio Buendía, founded the (fictitious) town of Macondo. The novel is often cited as one of the supreme achievements in literature.The magical realist style and thematic substance of One Hundred Years of Solitude established it as an important representative novel of the literary Latin American Boom of the 1960s and 1970s, which was stylistically influenced by Modernism (European and North American) and the Cuban Vanguardia (Avant-Garde) literary movement.
Since it was first published in May 1967 in Buenos Aires by Editorial Sudamericana, One Hundred Years of Solitude has been translated into 46 languages and sold more than 50 million copies. The novel, considered García Márquez's magnum opus, remains widely acclaimed and …
One Hundred Years of Solitude (Spanish: Cien años de soledad, American Spanish: [sjen ˈaɲoz ðe soleˈðað]) is a landmark 1967 novel by Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez that tells the multi-generational story of the Buendía family, whose patriarch, José Arcadio Buendía, founded the (fictitious) town of Macondo. The novel is often cited as one of the supreme achievements in literature.The magical realist style and thematic substance of One Hundred Years of Solitude established it as an important representative novel of the literary Latin American Boom of the 1960s and 1970s, which was stylistically influenced by Modernism (European and North American) and the Cuban Vanguardia (Avant-Garde) literary movement.
Since it was first published in May 1967 in Buenos Aires by Editorial Sudamericana, One Hundred Years of Solitude has been translated into 46 languages and sold more than 50 million copies. The novel, considered García Márquez's magnum opus, remains widely acclaimed and is recognized as one of the most significant works both in the Hispanic literary canon and in world literature.
This is one of those books that are just perfect in ways that are hard to describe. I felt like I found a new place, moved in and made it my home, then had it all taken away from me. It was beautiful and moving and deeply crushing.
I cannot recommend it enough honestly, it might be a perfect book.
Review of 'One Hundred Years of Solitude' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
(Read in the original Spanish) One Hundred Years of Solitude is a masterpiece, one of those rare books that put me in a trance and take zero effort to read. Gabriel Garcia Marquez has such mastery over words that I almost felt like I wasn't reading at my pace but one deliberately set by him, setting up turns of phrase and reveals that matched the cadence at which he wanted me to read. It's magic realism at its finest, even its overall structure reflects this; how it evolves from an ahistorical almost allegorical narrative to one that is increasingly overtaken by context and reality as it goes on, how one keeps fighting against the confusing repetitive names throughout generations of characters (a common complaint) in the same way the Buendía family fights to break out of the historical cycles it keeps falling victim to; does it matter which Aureliano you're …
(Read in the original Spanish) One Hundred Years of Solitude is a masterpiece, one of those rare books that put me in a trance and take zero effort to read. Gabriel Garcia Marquez has such mastery over words that I almost felt like I wasn't reading at my pace but one deliberately set by him, setting up turns of phrase and reveals that matched the cadence at which he wanted me to read. It's magic realism at its finest, even its overall structure reflects this; how it evolves from an ahistorical almost allegorical narrative to one that is increasingly overtaken by context and reality as it goes on, how one keeps fighting against the confusing repetitive names throughout generations of characters (a common complaint) in the same way the Buendía family fights to break out of the historical cycles it keeps falling victim to; does it matter which Aureliano you're reading about? In the same way I want to say yes the characters are constantly trying and failing to define themselves as individuals. Narratively it's structured as a series of vignettes framed as mundane occurrences that are nonetheless filled with magic and unpredictable wonders. I can tell this story of a family (and community) trying to carve a place for themselves in the face of encroaching history will stay with me for a long time.
Review of 'One Hundred Years of Solitude' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
This story was not for me. It reminded me of Ursula Le Guin's "Hernes" novella from [b:The Found and the Lost: The Collected Novellas of Ursula K. Le Guin|29868611|The Found and the Lost The Collected Novellas of Ursula K. Le Guin|Ursula K. Le Guin|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1476615440s/29868611.jpg|50237861] (the lone disappointment for me in that collection). In both stories, we get a family history covering multiple generations with detailed and varied characters. And in both cases, I felt like I was reading an appendix rather than a book.
I love digging for more detail when I'm invested in the characters or plot, but in this case I wasn't.
J'attendais peut-être trop de ce roman salué unanimement par la critique et par les critiques ici. J'ai bien aimé le début de cette fresque familiale, mais j'ai fini par me lasser de ces personnages qui se ressemblent tous et dont les vies elle-mêmes se ressemblent beaucoup. J'ai terminé un peu déçu, tout en reconnaissant la qualité du style et l'ambition de l'oeuvre.