Tales from the Town of Widows
by James Cañón (Goodreads author!)
|
|
Sign in to Goodreads to see your friends' reviews of Tales from the Town of Widows.
discuss this book
friend reviews (0)
To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.
other reviews (showing 1-20 of 53)
Read in January, 2007
recommends it for:
everyONE
Tales from the Town of Widows and Chronicles from the Land of Men is a feast for anyone who relishes beautiful, intelligent writing infused with humor and humanity. Set against the backdrop of the Colombian civil war, it tells the story of a group of women living in a remote mountain village who are forced to fend for themselves after a band of Communist guerrillas descends on the village and forcibly recruits all the men, killing those who resist and leading the others away to fight for their c...more
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
Read in August, 2007
recommended to LisaRose by:
My book clubrecommends it for: All who love to read
This is a story about finding one's identity and humanity. Just what can we endure when all that we know, all that has been culturally engrained, has been brutally ripped from us? That's one of the questions that Tales seems to answer. James Canon's style is elegant and lyrical, yet he never allows his reader to forget there is a war going on. And while the war is the backdrop for the overall plot development, it's the small battles, told in the tales of the widows and the chronicles of the ...more
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
Read in January, 2008
When guerillas come to the small Colombian village of Mariquita and take away all the men, the women are left with a withered old priest, a young boy who's mother disguised him in one of his sister's dresses, and later, a young gay man. Clueless at first as to how to proceed, the women finally organize themselves under the guidance of the police chief's wife who declares herself magistrate, and the new schoolteacher who must earn the trust of the villagers. The loss of their husbands, boyfriends...more
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
1 comments
Read in March, 2008
I must say this book has become one of my favorites and will definitely have a place on my bookshelf when I start my library. A tale of a small Colombian village that is touched by the on going civil war that has wreaked havoc over the land for 4 decades. Its a funny, magical, sorrowful and empowering tale of the women who are left behind after their men are either killed or kidnapped by the guerillas. A definite must read for those who love reality tinged with fantasy.
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
1 comments
Read in June, 2007
recommends it for:
idealists, Garcia-Marquez fans, and, well, men
What a charming discovery from a library shelf!
So the men of the village are marched off by guerrillas, presumably never to be seen again. How do the women survive? What mental and social resources do they draw upon? It's delightful, entertaining, a bit mystical and probably what every guy secretly thinks would happen if women were left long enough to their own devices. (The author is graceful enough to be plausible about most of this.) Not terribly flattering to Catholicism, or men, for th...more
So the men of the village are marched off by guerrillas, presumably never to be seen again. How do the women survive? What mental and social resources do they draw upon? It's delightful, entertaining, a bit mystical and probably what every guy secretly thinks would happen if women were left long enough to their own devices. (The author is graceful enough to be plausible about most of this.) Not terribly flattering to Catholicism, or men, for th...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2008
recommends it for:
people who like an interesting love/utopia story
What would happen if all the men in a remote Colombian village were taken away and the women were left to fend for themselves? hmmm...tempting :) I fell in love with some of the characters in this book just like in Gabriel Garcia Marquez's books. It was a well working, yet ironic, utopia. Although, if I was a guy, I would be a bit angry that most of the men portrayed in this book are vicious and ruthless. It was great to see a book about war that talked about the survivors rather than the milita...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
I don't know why, but this book is very forgettable. It was on my reading log under "May" and I couldn't remember a thing about it until I looked it up on here and glanced at the cover. Breezy and mostly enjoyable, though not very nice to Catholicism.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in December, 2007
Great story from multiple eyes in a small Columbian town in the early 90s. Women are left alone to create a utopian society after rebels conscript or kill the villagers' men.
Small vignettes with soldiers stories. Eloquently written, funny, poignant.
Small vignettes with soldiers stories. Eloquently written, funny, poignant.
Like this review?
yes
1 comments
This book was entertaining, cultured, intelligent, historical, and sad wrapped in one. Great collection of chronological stories all about the same South American village.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in September, 2006
recommends it for:
Everyone
This book is by a friend of mine and it is magical. You will laugh, you will cry, you will have a huge moment!
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
