Look inside

The General in His Labyrinth

Not availableFree shipping
Buy Now

About the book

The General in his Labyrinth is the compelling tale of Simón Bolívar, a hero who has been forgotten and whose power is fading, retracing his steps down the Magdalena River by the Nobel Laureate Gabriel García Márquez, author of One Hundred Years of Solitude and Love in the Time of Cholera.

'It was the fourth time he had travelled along the Magdalena, and he could not escape the impression that he was retracing the steps of his life'

At the age of forty-six General Simón Bolívar, who drove the Spanish from his lands and became the Liberator of South America, takes himself into exile. He makes a final journey down the Magdalene River, revisiting the cities along its shores, reliving the triumphs, passions and betrayals of his youth. Consumed by the memories of what he has done and what he failed to do, Bolívar hopes to see a way out of the labyrinth in which he has lived all his life. . ..

'An exquisite writer, wise, compassionate and extremely funny' Sunday Telegraph

'An imaginative writer of genius' Guardian

'The most important writer of fiction in any language' Bill Clinton

Editions (4)

ISBN9780241968727
PublisherDK
Publication Date03/06/14
Pages304

Reviews & Ratings

4 ratings

1 reviews

2.6

Tap to filter

  • dermot
    dermot

    5 Followers

    3.0

    I read this book because of the constant references to it in John Greene's "Looking for Alaska" which I read and reviewed earlier this year. The last words of Simon Bolivar in that book have a large influence on the character of Alaska and I thought it would give me a fuller picture of the character to read this book also. I have read some of Gabriel Garcia Marquez' work before and described him as "wordy and long-winded". I'm afraid that "The General in his Labyrinth" has done nothing to dis-spell this notion. The only Labyrinth I felt I was negotiating in this book was the narrative which I, once again, found to be a good story buried in a sea of adjectives and flashbacks. Despite all this, I actually like Marquez, I like his stories and the topics he deals with. My only wish was that he had dealt with them a little less wordily and in a little more depth. All in all i can only recommend this to the people who truly love Marquez and his works or people who like a "deep" reading experience.

    May 1, 2025

Reading is better with the READO app.

Discover books, track progress, read together.

Library

Keep track