Vicente Blasco Ibáñez (1867–1928)

The story of the rise and fall of a bullfighter in turn of the century Spain, Sangre y Arena addresses themes both universal (rags to riches, the fleetingness of fame) and specific (the political & class struggles in early 20th C Spain). The protagonist is Juan Gallardo, born into a poor family & fascinated by bullfighting from an early age, who goes on to become a celebrated bullfighter. While I am not usually a big fan of a straightforward realist/minimalist style, I found it an effective show more way of telling the story. Ibanez lays out the facts for us to decide what we will make of it. The narrative has plenty of drama and sociopolitical details yet the story never devolves into melodrama or pedantry. In short, the book is an enjoyable read whose simple narrative conceals a powerful tale of ambition and loss. show less

Conflictos políticos, amores tormentosos, descripciones abundantes y bellas, personajes interesantes y bien estructurados. Por lo que he visto, a mucha gente no le agrada el realismo español por este tipo de elementos. Sin embargo, todo esto fue lo que hizo que Entre naranjos me encantara. Blasco Ibáñez hizo que terminara de enamorarme del realismo español.
Siglo diecinueve, gracias por tan buenos libros.

PD: Agradecimiento especial a Sofía Hernández, por su generoso gesto de prestarme show more el libro y compartirlo conmigo. show less

Vivendo tre anni a Valencia, mi è sembrato d'obbligo approfondire la conoscenza di questo autore.
Già dalle prime pagine ti trasporta in un'epoca che no c'è più, in cui a dominare lo sguardo dei personaggi che vivono nella zona paludosa del Saler sono le risaie e l'acqua dell'Albufera. L'autore ha il dono di arricchire le pagine con descrizioni sentite di quei luoghi e delle persone che li hanno attraversati.

A married bullfighter is seduced.

It's weird how little action there is for a movie about a bullfighter. And they do almost everything they can to make the protagonist unlikable.

Concept: C
Story: D
Characters: D
Dialog: C
Pacing: C
Cinematography: C
Special effects/design: C
Acting: B
Music: C

Enjoyment: C minus

GPA: 1.9/4