Rating: 
Summary: lesson in the depravity of man
Review: As I opened this book, I thought to myself "Wow! This seems like a great story!" I found myself growing more depressed and disgusted with every page. Although the style and Marquez' technique are unquestionably wonderful, the overlaying themes of lust, lack of self-control, and immorality outweighed the good. The goal of nearly very character's life is the same; to please him or herself. Very few characters are in the least bit caring of self-sacrificing. The only way I could reconcile myself to reading this disapointing work was the fact that it is a lesson in man's depravity. I realized that every person, without God's intervention, is just as bad or worse than Marquez' perverse characters. The book is not without its high points- I loved the ending, the mystery of the Segundo twins, and Ursula's strength. There are some passages where the language is incredible. Marquez is a mastery of imagery! I only wish that there had been more positive images to remember....
Rating: 
Summary: wonderful, wonderful
Review: Wonderful, wonderful! This book is so packed with such magical scenes. Witty. Funny. Outrageous. One of a kind characters. I can read it all over again and still find a lot of details I never noticed before. Everytime I read this the story always seems new. Definitely one book for all who love books.
Rating: 
Summary: Brilliant and Enchanting...
Review: When I first picked up this book the mother in this novel reminded me of my Grandmother. In Ursula I could see my Grandmother's strength, the way she held our family together, and her ability to carry on through what would kill normal people. The vast amount of well drawn out characters and sheer beauty of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's masterpiece lets you feel as if you have drifted into these people's lives. You live through their joys and their sorrows. Marquez is so phenomenally talented in his writing. He makes it feel so natural to follow various characters through their escapades and the "magical" events that happen to them. The funny thing about this is that it took me almost a year to read this book. I'm not entirely sure why, it was almost as if I slowly absorbed the novel over time. When I finally closed the book for the last time I was almost sad that the whole adventure was over. This was a joy to read, I can't wait to read it again, hopefully I won't take a year to read it the next time around.
Rating:
Summary: The story of the Buendias and Macondo
Review: Why write a review if there are already so many? Perhaps one more will tip you over the edge, and you will buy the book This fantastical tale is based around the life of the Buendia family and the village that they founded, Macondo. While epic in its scale (one hundred years) it does not read like an epic. Rather, it is like listening to an old relative recount past ancestors, with a decidedly magical-realism spin. This book is beautifully written (and translated, by Gregory Rabassa) with some of the most evocative and lyrical prose you are likely to come across. Yet it is still a very sturdy story - while you could read it for the craftsmanship of the words alone, you would miss a very good tale. Marquez has the interesting technique of referring to events in his stories before they happen, so you joyfully look out for events coming up. A word of warning - make sure that the edition that you buy/borrow/steal has a copy of the family tree in the beginning - with so many characters having the same name, and the branches of the family being so entwined, you will find yourself referring to it time and again. And don't be put off by the number of pages - even though it has over 400, it never bogs down. Once you have read this wonderful tale of a village and family gone full circle, from a beginning to an end, you will realise why it was awarded the Nobel Prize. Treat yourself.
Rating:
Summary: A formidable novel by a major figure
Review: "One Hundred Years of Solitude," by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, is an undeniable landmark in Latin American literature. The book, which has been translated into English by Gregory Rabassa, is the multigenerational saga of the Buendia family and the town of Macondo. Garcia Marquez narrates decades of love, death, war, socio-economic activism, incest, and politics in the lives of a large cast of characters. I must admit, I didn't find "100 Years" to be as satisfying or as engaging as some of GGM's other works (in particular, the gripping "Story of a Shipwrecked Sailor" and the wonderful "Of Love and Other Demons," both of which I recommend with great enthusiasm). I think "100 Years" is in some ways comparable to "Paradiso," by Cuba's Jose Lezama Lima: I found both to be ambitious "meganovels" which, despite their many good points, were lacking in some way. But "100 Years" is well worth reading. The novel has many powerful and haunting scenes, and throughout is graced by touches of magic. There are many intriguing, and often tragic, characters: the gypsy Melquiades, the dirt-eating Rebeca, the matriarch Ursula, the seventeen Aurelianos, and the butterfly-heralded Mauricio Babilonia. An essential book for those with a serious interest in Latin American literature.
Rating:
Summary: Magical, Lyrical and Astonishing!!
Review: Be warned: this is one of my favorite books of all time (the other two are *Alice in Wonderland* and *Huckleberry Finn*). It's the book that convinced me to learn Spanish, so I could appreciate it in the original. "Wonderful" doesn't even begin to describe this novel. It transported me out of my world into a magical kingdom of poetry, character and mythology. People will still be reading this marvel at the end of the Twenty-First Century. Have I mentioned I *really* like this novel?
Rating:
Summary: hypnotic kind
Review: This is one of the few stories I've read that always give a fresh jolt for every reread, in fact its hypnotic beauty has found me reading it for the third time now. One Hundred Years of Solitude teems with allegory and renders a reader to a full state of brooding and perspicacity. From the concept of the revolution and its paradox, to the ineffable alchemy; across the detailed and odd sounds of sex and death, promiscuity, incest, love and wild love, this amazing tale will surely dissolve you like a trance. The story's beginning is distinct and its end penetrating but what rich plots and (sometimes larger than life) characters span them in between. The comic and the tragic intertwine gracefully, while some few hints of ancient science are amusing. While this story constantly talks about a man's or a woman's solitude because of a pursuit or obsession or perhaps because of a forgotten past or one's inability to deal with reality, or just plainly a secret to an old age (time plays a significant role), it also expresses man's hope of raising virtue and integrity again in spite of dissolution and madness. It depicts social realities (most outrageously) and seeks contemplation on the nature of our being. Whatever description this novel has gained, being marked as Magical Realism, Postcolonialism, Historical Narration or whatever, I would rather call it a pure expression of of life.
Rating:
Summary: A classic in Latinamerican literature
Review: Un clàsico de la literatura de latinoamèrica. uno de los mejores ejemplos de realismo màgico y, probablemente, la mejor obra de Garcìa Màrquez.
Rating:
Summary: The great American novel
Review: From its' famous opening sentence (probably the greatest opening sentence of all time) to its' unlikely ending this is probably the greatest book ever written in this hemisphere. This is the novel that earned Marquez the Nobel Prize and it was never more deserved. It has been my favorite book for twenty years and I've just gotten a brand new copy and I can't wait to read it again with the new perspectives gained in that time. It is impossible to describe yourself as well read if you haven't read this all time classic.
Rating:
Summary: Blood, Dirt, Sweat and above all, Love
Review: The title of this book says it all, One Hundred Years of Solitude. It is, in my opinion, as monumental a work as Moby-Dick because it isn't about one thing, or two things, it is about everything! Marquez never fails to surprise with his writing, the wonderful poetic way he tells of how people try to keep an ounce of humanity in the face of the vicious meat-grinder which we call life is absolutely amazing. Reading a Marquez book is the sensory equivalent to the smell of an impending thunderstorm and is the tactile equivalent of moist earth. If that description seems odd, it will seem fitting after you finish this book.
| 
