The General in His Labyrinth by Gabriel García Márquez
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Publisher Site – Penguin

This is a work of historical fiction by Gabriel García Márquez that tells the story of the last days of Simón Bolívar as the revolutionary hero attempted to flee Latin America toward exile in Europe. (Bolívar led a big chunk of Latin America to independence from Spain and ruled over Gran Colombia — a country that included Colombia, Venezuela, Panama, and parts of other adjacent countries.) The story covers a trip up the Magdalena River from Colombia’s interior to the coast and on to Santa Marta, where his trip (and life) would end. [FYI: The title comes from words Bolívar spoke slightly before his death when he was putting together his will in which he said, “…How will I ever get out of this labyrinth?”]

There is some contention about the degree to which the book is historical fiction verses a historical account. It seems there are some fictionalized elements, but because García Márquez leans into the degree to which Bolívar was quite ill during this period the book may be more accurate in some ways than more hagiographic accounts.

The events of the story took place in 1830, and the times present an interesting contrast to our own as Bolívar travels to places that have not yet gotten the news that he is no longer President and treat his visit as one would that of a head of state.

At the book’s end there is a brief epilogue by the author as well as an extensive timeline of Bolívar’s life. The latter is quite useful because this book covers only a short period of time, though one of is great interest.

I’d highly recommend this for readers who enjoy literary fiction and / or are interested in Latin American history.

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