Reviews

Garden by the Sea by Mercè Rodoreda

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hannicogood's review against another edition

4.0

A really beautiful little novel that was more effective in capturing a moment in time or a setting than it was a plot. However, the scenes it captures are spectacular and the book has a great sense of aesthetics balanced with stripped-down prose.

annaeap's review against another edition

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5.0

Many fans of The Great Gatsby will enjoy this book! Translator Eva Dunsky describes the book as "a slow burn towards catastrophe." She writes, "At its simplest, Garden by the Sea is a story of spurned love, shifting sands, and the ways in which idleness and inaction can come to define a life."

Dunsky's excellent review (WITH SPOILERS) is here: https://readingintranslation.com/2019/12/02/shifting-sands-merce-rodoredas-garden-by-the-sea-translated-from-catalan-by-maruxa-relano-and-martha-tennent/

milkawithoreo's review against another edition

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5.0

Primera incursió en la prosa de Rodoreda que m'ha agradat molt. Retracta una societat rica, típica de l'època en què va ser escrita, a més des del punt de vista d'un personatge del servei com és el jardiner. Si bé li costa arrencar una mica, arriba a tenir un ritme molt important, amb fets narrats al llarg de sis estius on tothom va canviant. També cal destacar els personatges tan ben construïts com arriben a ser l'Eugeni o la senyoreta Rosamaria.