n  Bettie's Booksn

4,75/5

Sencillamente espectacular … háganse un favor y lean esta trilogía!!!

After more than 3,000 pages, I am finally finished with the Century Trilogy. I have to give it at least 2 Stars for keeping me reading though the entire saga. The first book in the series, n  Fall of Giantsn, was superb with interesting characters who are caught up in WWI and the Russian Revolution. The second book, n  Winter of the Worldn, was just ok, with caricatures of the characters suffering through pre-war era through the end of WWII. Much less interesting despite the opportunity for a great story. This book is like cardboard cutouts of caricatures, as the story progresses from the start of the Cold War to the fall of the Berlin Wall. Completely disappointing characters and story, given the dynamic period in history.

I do have to thank Mr. Follett for clearly outlining the differences between liberals and conservatives for me, he has completely changed my appreciation and understanding for the better.





Liberals are patient, caring and wise, especially liberal politicians and we are so lucky to have them restraining the evil conservatives, especially the white and military ones, at every turn. Liberal politicians are so smart, always looking out for the little guy and making the right decisions to ensure the world survives. Of course, liberal leaders can take some liberties with their followers, more as they rise in the hierarchy. If he happens to get a member of the staff pregnant, he will gladly pay for the abortion even if he won’t leave his wife or show much concern. Perks of the job. Most communists were really just frustrated liberals who want communism to succeed and not be so oppressive. It was just the wrong people in charge of the party until Gorby finally comes along. And really, the best a conservative could be was flaky or weird, but more likely ultraconservative or rabid or literally criminal or murderous, their friends and coworkers are really just cronies, collaborators and/or racists. Liberals rule! Conservatives must be vanquished! I only read the final quarter of the book to see just how outrageous Follett could get.

Edge of Eternity
4 solid stars!
If you can’t enjoy a work of fiction like this one, while leaving your political beliefs aside, then this book is not for you.
I believe that the main intention of the author here was to entertain.
With that out my my chest, let me say how much I enjoyed this absorbing and entertaining trilogy.
All of the 3 books kept me away from reality.
This one, which covers the years between 1961 and 2008, although very political, was a great conclusion to the trilogy, but it is my least favourite because some parts were slow and had some unnecessary “flashbacks” of things that happened within the same book. Also, the characters here were not that charismatic. But this one had stronger scenes that I found touching.
As like the other volumes, it’s not flawless, but I loved every single page, and listening to the audiobook narrated by John Lee while reading the book, only double my pleasure.
As I said on previous books, I read it as if I were watching a long soap opera.
This trilogy is truly an ambitious work of fiction and the writing is simply terrific.

Audiobook: 37 hours (normal speed)
Book (hardcover): 1094 pages, 368k words
Average reading hour: between 30 and 33 hours

Após quatro anos de início da trilogia O Século, eis que esta chega ao fim com No Limiar da Eternidade, um livro cujas 1022 páginas se leem tão bem que é difícil abandonar a sua leitura.

O Século retratado nesta trilogia é para mim o mais rico em história, abrangendo duas Grandes Guerras e uma Guerra Fria que colocou em numa "guerra" as duas grandes super potências do mundo atual EUA e URSS.

Mais uma vez Follett junta as cinco famílias iniciais, juntamente com as gerações que lhes sucederam para recriar na perfeição o ambiente que se fez sentir nos cinco principais países do mundo: a família britânica, a alemã, a americana, a russa e polaca.

O autor faz, num período de quase 30 anos, uma retrospectiva fiel (no que se pode ser fiel ao contar de História) da Guerra Fria, dos Direitos Humanos entre brancos e negros e entre homens e mulheres, da diferença de vida entre as duas alemanhas, a do Leste a e Ocidental, o regime político na URSS (incluindo um campo de trabalhos forçados na Sibéria), a crise dos mísseis de Cuba e as mortes dos dois Kennedy's e de Martin Luther King...

Opinião completa em : http://marcadordelivros.blogspot.pt/2...

4.5 stars

I so anticipated the 3rd in the Century Trilogy and I greedily devoured this as quickly as the first two. I was anxious to get back to the continuing saga of these 5 families whose lives intertwine as history unfolds. I am not sure I loved this one quite as much, as the time frame of the 1960's thru the 1980's were familiar to me as it is my history. Things were very familiar and I felt that I missed the "learning" part of his first two. That said, I am amazed at the amount of research that Follett must do, and there were enough insider tidbits to make me sit up and take notice. The story flows as history is made.

Follett takes us through these historical events with characters that come from every walk of life, and he shows us both sides of the issues. And let me say, he is a master at this craft. He does not make his characters (real or fictional) heroes, but he makes them human, full of great moments and full of flaws. This last of the series gave me a few characters that I did not like as much as previous books, did not warm too ...but I disliked them with the same passion that I love others. That is talent. I also felt there was a bit more "edginess" to this one, more grit....but perhaps because it dealt with a more assertive and aggressive time. Folks were not as genteel and well mannered.

I am sad to let these families and their histories go. I almost want to speed up time so that Follett may continue his saga into the 21st century....give us a glimpse into the future generations. Thank you Mr. Follett, not only for the history lesson but for a wonderful reading adventure, traveling the century with you.

Just a ps - I listened to the audible of this book, and did not enjoy the reader as much as the first two, perhaps because the "American voices" did not quite ring true.

Incredible disappointment! The focus on racism, as this was all the last third of a century was about. JFK can be remembered without comments on his sex life. The bias in favor of left-wing philosophy was irritating. Reagan/Bush ridiculed. The Cold War was ended due to their policies. Nothing about our reaching the moon; one of our most important achievements. Why Mr. Follett ended the trilogy with this is beyond me. I'm calling it a two-book story, and skip the third.

Quiero decirles que de los 3 libros de Century este es el que más me gusto, porque nos muestra como una vez que termina la 2a guerra mundial el mundo cambió y muchas cosas sucedieron; nos muestra la guerra fría, la división de Alemania, la era de Kennedy , la lucha afroamericana con Martin Luther King, la revolución de los jóvenes, la caída de la URSS entre otras muchas cosas.

En cuanto a las familias solo me hubiera gustado que le dedicara más páginas cuando mueren algunos de los personajes principales del 1er libro de la saga, pero aún así es un libro de 5 estrellas

Tal como muitos leitores antes de mim, esperava muito mais deste fecho da trilogia "O Século".
É um livro mais centrado em política e menos em História (se bem que percebo que neste período andam de mãos dadas e é difícil separar), as personagens não são tão "ricas" como nos outros dois volumes e sinto que o livro se "arrastou" em vez daquela sensação de "não consigo parar de ler" que os outros dois volumes me deram.
Ficou sem se saber se a Tanya e o Vasilli saíram da URSS e também Dimka ficou ali um pouco posto de parte.
E como me recordo de ver a queda do muro na TV, confesso que me emocionei um pouco. Fica aqui a confissão do meu ponto fraco neste livro :)

Really awful. Who knew that Israel was responsible for the birth of Hezbollah? Who knew that Ronald Reagan and his policies had nothing to do with the fall of communism? The blacks are noble, and the white males are bad. The most racist comment in the book is when a black woman, and a major heroine of the book, refers to a young white man and a "white boy", and yet it is not even noted. The liberal tendentiousness is pervasive, but the writing itself is even worse. Improbable and awkward sex fills in wherever the plot needs some fill. The only nuclear families are for couples who haven't had the chance to abandon or cheat on their spouses yet. Zero authenticity or sense of place , for example, in East Germany or the communist block. One character is passionately straight and then is conveniently gay, and always has been, ten years later. The writing is rushed, tendentious, and clumsy. After two interesting and engaging books in this trilogy, I am sorry I wasted the time on this garbage. Shame, Mr. Follett. And, time to stop drinking the Kool Aid.

Final de la saga. En esta tercera entrega se narra la Guerra Fría. Desde la construcción del Muro de Berlín, desde su levantamiento en 1961 hasta su caída en 1989. Todos nuestros protagonistas se ven afectados, nietos y bisnietos ya de los que comenzaron la saga y que en este volumen nos van dejando. Algunas familias separadas físicamente por el muro.
La lucha por los derechos civiles, la crisis de los misiles en Cuba, la primavera de Praga y Hungría, los años 60, la Guerra de Vietnam, el nacimiento de SOLIDARIDAD en Polonia y la caída del muro y del régimen soviético. Kennedy, Jhonson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan.. Kruchev, Brezniev, Andropov, Chernenko y Gorbachov...
Es increíble que tras la experiencia histórica del desastre, en todos los ámbitos, de la U.R.S.S. la ideología comunista perviva. El humano es muy tozudo.
Brillante fin de la saga del Siglo. Imprescindible para conocer la historia geopolítica del S.XX, probablemente el siglo más importante hasta ahora para la humanidad.