I didn’t worry about keeping all of the names and events perfectly straight in my mind because understanding the overarching ideas was more important. In that regard, I love the way this story literally spans over a century of time. In some ways, I think that is part of the essence of the novel: intense drama occurs and crazy things happen and people are born and then die, but amidst the chaos life will always go on. I found that it didn’t really matter if I knew exactly what was happening at all times because in the end everything was cyclical anyways. Though I did have to reorient myself at times while reading, the confusion problem wasn’t a significant issue for me. There is an ever-growing cast of characters, many of which share one of two names: either José Arcadio or Aureliano. The largest complaint I’ve heard about this book is that it can be confusing and difficult to fully understand.

“She became human in her solitude.” (p.363) There’s nothing quite like his writing style– you really have to experience it for yourself! Moreover, the writing itself is beautiful and enchanting, like Márquez wanted to lull the reader into a state of tranquility with this strange, captivating fairy tale of sorts. Each scene flows into the next as though they were always meant to lead directly into one another, as though the story could not have been told any other way. The chapters feel more like checkpoints added for the benefit of the reader rather than necessary components of the story itself, emphasizing the remarkable fluidity of this novel. One of the countless strengths of One Thousand Years of Solitude is how seamlessly the stories and experiences of numerous characters are woven together in one effortless account. Not only is this novel an incredible work of literature, but it is also a captivating, entertaining story that encompasses so many different aspects of the human experience.

My Spanish professor has been recommending this book to us for several semesters, and now I finally understand the source of his enthusiasm. In a New York Times book review, William Kennedy once wrote that “ One Hundred Years of Solitude is the first piece of literature since the Book of Genesis that should be required reading for the entire human race.” After reading Gregory Rabassa’s English translation of this classic Spanish novel by Gabriel García Márquez, I have to say that I wholeheartedly agree with Kennedy.

One thousand days of solitude