TOO MARVELOUS FOR WORDS

The chorus of the above-cited song – by lyricist Johnny Mercer and composer Richard Whiting – might fittingly be played as background to reading this glorious book, One Hundred Years of Solitude, by Colombian Nobel Prize-winning author Gabriel García Márquez.

While this classic, globally acclaimed book is filled with compelling action, rolling adventure, head-spinning twists, turns, surprises, and whirling passages through past, present, and future time zones – it is the exquisite, lyrical language – and the images this language evokes – that transport the plot, myriad spiraling subplots and actions into a magical, memorable experience “too marvelous for words.“ Imagine delicate, floating yellow butterflies falling gently to the earth, little gold crafted fish made by a fierce warrior, names like Remedio the Beautiful, and gypsies bringing a magic carpet to a Paradise-like, peninsular place called Macondo, founded by the patriarch of the family whose passionate stories are told and contained in the “hundred years” covered in this book.

Because of its complexity, huge scale, and liberal mix of reality and myth, this book may not be an easy read, but it is a richly rewarding one. Those who persevere, will know what a masterpiece is.

To honor the language of this masterpiece we have provided access to the original, Spanish language version.