Reviews with content warning for Racism - El Corazón de las Tinieblas

This was me revisiting this book for the first time since studying it in high school. I still find it to be such an incredibly interesting novel. To say I "enjoy" this book doesn't feel right -- but to say it enthralls me as a historical object is definitely true.

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majortomwaits's review against another edition

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4.75

I first tried to read this some 10 years ago, maybe more, I made it to a 50 page mark and gave up.

However, since then, I watched Apocalypse Now a couple of times and I felt compelled to give the book another go. After all, it was described as the most linguistically rich book ever written, so why not?

It certainly did flow much smoother this time around and I did change my initial stance on it. Insanely beautifully written and vivid in its imagery. I'm happy that I gave it a second chance, because it was an interesting ride for sure.

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oliviatheron's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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duarshe's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

So... I can safely say I didn't enjoy this. I felt like there was nothing happening and even the climactic moment of the story was extremely bland and underwhelming. I appreciate the theme and topic of the novella, the playing with the light and dark... But this was not for me.

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em031605_9's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

Lots of troubling language, to say the least. Dated stereotypes. It was boring, problematic, and not interesting at all.

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the_gob's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

I am clearly ignorant of the quality of this story to English literature. I find the prose well-written, it's construction obviously of a high quality, but the actual story, the plot, the meaning (?), did not have the same resonance. I found the story plodding, befuddling and at times almost boring. I assume it is me at fault here, else why is this work considered so highly? I understand it is both a criticism of the social views and political thinking of its time, but seemed to me laborious in it undertaking. I did not enjoy this read much.

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applequinn's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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gmariecosta's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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