Colombia - One Hundred Years of Solitude
Book 35: One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel García Márquez
"One Hundred Years of Solitude tells the story of the rise and fall, birth and death of the mythical town of Macondo through the history of the Buendia family. Inventive, amusing, magnetic, sad and alive with unforgettable men and women - brimming with truth, compassion, and a lyrical magic that strikes the soul - this novel is a masterpiece in the art of fiction." What is there to say about this book that hasn't already been said? Is it a masterpiece? Without a doubt, yes. Is it one of those books that you either love with all your heart or you struggle to finish? Yes, that too. I was in the latter category. Not because I didn't enjoy it. I actually did, quite a lot. But it took me forever to read it because if you don't fall into the world entirely, if you don't immerse yourself in Macondo and the Buendia family, you will continuously get lost and have to retrace your steps. It's not just the repeating names (though that certainly doesn't help). The plot jumps. Not in a wholly unpleasant way, but in a way that makes it very difficult to read this book if you're picking it up and putting it down frequently. And, unfortunately, even in Covid-universe, I don't have long stretches of uninterrupted time to sit and read. This book deserves that and, more importantly, I think requires it to be fully appreciated.
"One Hundred Years of Solitude tells the story of the rise and fall, birth and death of the mythical town of Macondo through the history of the Buendia family. Inventive, amusing, magnetic, sad and alive with unforgettable men and women - brimming with truth, compassion, and a lyrical magic that strikes the soul - this novel is a masterpiece in the art of fiction." What is there to say about this book that hasn't already been said? Is it a masterpiece? Without a doubt, yes. Is it one of those books that you either love with all your heart or you struggle to finish? Yes, that too. I was in the latter category. Not because I didn't enjoy it. I actually did, quite a lot. But it took me forever to read it because if you don't fall into the world entirely, if you don't immerse yourself in Macondo and the Buendia family, you will continuously get lost and have to retrace your steps. It's not just the repeating names (though that certainly doesn't help). The plot jumps. Not in a wholly unpleasant way, but in a way that makes it very difficult to read this book if you're picking it up and putting it down frequently. And, unfortunately, even in Covid-universe, I don't have long stretches of uninterrupted time to sit and read. This book deserves that and, more importantly, I think requires it to be fully appreciated. 
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