Love in The Time of Cholera (1985)

I was really expecting to love this book, but I ended up being pretty disappointed.

My main criticism is a morally rooted one. I don't mind problematic characters as long as I feel like the text is aware of their issues and actively exploring them (see: Lolita) but I do not know how I am expected to root for a grand sweeping love story for a man who treats a child in his care so abusively. I feel like this is completely secondary plot point and not something we are encouraged to consider by text, but as soon as it was introduced it was all I could think about. I felt the novel normalized his actions, and that made me far too uncomfortable to enjoy anything.

Besides this issue, I thought it was a somewhat underwhelming story and quite definitely "chick lit" which isn't really my style. I like when the social structure peeps in on the love story, but the times when we are just getting the mush I mentally checked out.

Although I was disappointed with this novel, the writing was beautiful (and beautifully translated) and I would look forward to reading other Garcia Marquez books that might have content I preferred. ( )

Great story telling of a serial three-way love affair set in 1880 to 1930 in Colombia. First there is the youthful fling, then the woman marries "properly", and then after she is widowed 50 years later, the original beau returns to woo, and win. But the plot is only a small part of the book. The characters are crafted by a master. They are all wonderfully nuanced - leaving the reader to determine the good/bad ratio of each. I found the description of the married couple in their later years to be particularly good. Theirs is a good and happy marriage, but far from perfect, which probably reflects reality more than most fictional relationships. The long-term beau is more evil. Many instances are given to make the reader feel well disposed toward him, but the balancing evil behaviour tipped my balance. While the plot is simple, the author makes the telling interesting, almost into a page turner. You know in broad terms what is going to happen, but the details to be filled in remain enticing. I have one quibble - there is a 20 page suicide note from a subsidiary character at the start of the book. The main character reads it and we hear only one detail from it. I spent the next 350 pages waiting to find out what was in the rest of the note. But it never surfaces again. Minor fault, but it distracted me.
Read March 2014 ( )

In many respects, I greatly enjoyed this book! The author's style reminded me of Orhan Pamuk, whom I also really like. What can I say -- I am a guy who enjoys good love stories. Marquez writes evocatively, compellingly, and sympathetically.

But as for convincing and plausible...well, that's a different story. Why Florentino Daza won the hearts and bodies of so many women -- well, I had to shake my head about that. He didn't seem all that special in physical terms, and he also wasn't particularly silver-tongued or smooth. In addition, Florentino's deliberate pursuit of the underaged girl placed in his charge was positively slimy. How does one reconcile this kind of behavior with his infatuation with Fermina, and why would such such a promiscuous knave could still carry a torch for her after all those years? For me, the pieces simply didn't add up. In addition, Florentino didn't deserve to enjoy a happy ending; truth be told, he was a well-mannered scum bag. What did I miss? ( )

Disliked Florentino Ariza, finding him at turns pathetic, stalker-ish, and sleazy. The incident with América Vicuña just put things over the top. I'm actually editing my rating to knock it down a star, because I don't like the treatment of women in this book generally.

There were enjoyable parts, though, and some delightful, sprightly writing. ( )

The dual protagonists in this novel are, as usual for Marques, fascinating characters whom we are happy to follow through a convoluted lifetime. I thoroughly enjoyed gaining impressions, through them, of the riverboat trade in a previous era of Latin American development, as well as the management of an upper-class household complete with native animals.

The novel concerns a romance conceived between two young people of similar class and background who promptly embark on a vast detour that takes up most of their lives. In order to return to one another in old age, the lovers must complete separate careers, broaden their experience, and perhaps destroy earlier ideals. Florentino explores the interior of his nation, the vagaries of commerce, and (famously, although predictably for Marquez) his own wide-ranging sexuality. Fermina discovers the shortcomings of material and political security in a loveless marriage. They both experience tragedy and must confront emotional shortcomings. Finally, as social change and conflict rage around them, they find solace together while pretending to carry cholera—a ruse that both protects and isolates them together.

Engrossing as a sentimental journey, the novel also suggests various symbolic interpretations. An example: A young nation may aspire to be something it’s not, aping the methods of more powerful countries, but must ultimately recognize its own nature and potentials, returning to the foundations of its heritage. In this way, real unity may gradually develop among a diverse citizenry. Such cut and dried explanations add little to one’s enjoyment of the book but can contribute to a sense of its layers of meaning.
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