Penguin Books, 2007
Every now and then a novel comes along that plays games with me. It's not until I can view it in it's entirety that I can sort out my opinions on it. Marquez's Love in the Time of Cholera was one of those novels for me. It started out fantastic, a unique story with a well developed setting and well defined characters that I enjoyed. As I continued with the novel, my thoughts began to blur. The characters became blurry for me. I didn't know how to feel about them. My thoughts would change from page to page. Characters that I loved would suddenly seem vile and vice versa. But by the time I finished the novel, Marquez had sealed the deal for me. His beautiful words had won me over and I'm so happy that I chose to read this wonderful work of literature.
Love in the Time of Cholera is a love story. It is not your typical love story, however. This story is honest. The characters admit that sometimes love is feigned and at other times love comes as a surprise. It is the story of Fermina Daza, Juvenal Urbino, and Florentino Ariza; three characters that will remain with me for a long time. The setting is Colombia in the early 20th century and Marquez does an amazing job at placing the reader in that setting with it's warm landscape, almond trees, and markets. Florentino Ariza pledges his love to Fermina Daza when they are both in their youth, but the relationship is forbidden by Daza's father. Fermina Daza marries Juvenal Urbino, a doctor who saves the town from the cholera epidemic, and Florentino Ariza spends the next fifty years having various affairs with women who will never match up to Fermina Daza while observing her from the sidelines. When Urbino dies, Ariza once again pledges his love to Daza.
This book won the Nobel Prize for literature and I can't argue with that. I don't know if this book would be for everyone though. It is not a fast moving book at all, and I think that it is best read slowly. I'd also recommend that it be read in the summer as it goes nicely with the weather. This book reads like a memoir, a history of lovers. There are emotional highs and lows; anger, betrayal, love, passion, death, deceit, hilarity, honesty, and contentedness. There were times when I found it hard to stick with the book because it seemed stagnant, but it all comes together when observed as a whole and that final picture is a beautiful one. I'm glad that I saw this one through. Marquez has written a true masterpiece of literature and I look forward to visiting some of his other works.
Other Reviews:
Chris (Book A Rama)
