The Hive (Paperback)

by Camilo Jose Cela (Author), J. M. Cohen (Author), Arturo Barea (Author)
Key Phrases: Señor Suárez, Señor Ramón, doña jesusa, Doña Rosa, Señorita Elvira, Don Roberto (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
Cela's novel depicts the hardship borne by the lower-middle class following the Spanish Civil War. Told through a series of interlinked vignettes, the story involves nearly 100 characters. For its blunt portrayal of life under a dictatorship, this 1953 book was banned during the Franco regime.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
"A lover of crude realism. . . Cela is reminiscent of Celine in Journey to the End of the Night." -- New York Herald Tribune

"Concerned with Madrid as a whole . . . an attack on Franco Spain and its poverty without one political word." -- Library Journal

"His best work . . . a carnivalesque reconstruction of the Spanish tradition, a nightmarish, surrealistic depiction of human endeavor." -- Julio Ortega

"One of the most gifted and powerfu writers in contemporary Europe." -- Robert Boyle, Commonweal

"The Hive is rather abruptly and sketchily represented, it is forceful and it is bald." -- Saul Bellow, New York Times

"A lover of crude realism. . . Cela is reminiscent of Celine in Journey to the End of the Night." -- New York Herald Tribune<br /><br />"Concerned with Madrid as a whole . . . an attack on Franco Spain and its poverty without one political word." -- Library Journal<br /><br />"His best work . . . a carnivalesque reconstruction of the Spanish tradition, a nightmarish, surrealistic depiction of human endeavor." -- Julio Ortega<br /><br />"One of the most gifted and powerfu writers in contemporary Europe." -- Robert Boyle, Commonweal<br /><br />"The Hive is rather abruptly and sketchily represented, it is forceful and it is bald." --Saul Bellow, New York Times

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 249 pages
• Publisher: Dalkey Archive Pr (June 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1564782689
• ISBN-13: 978-1564782687
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #243,860 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A day in the life of Franco's Spain., December 16, 2002

By	Hovig J. Heghinian (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"The Hive" is the story of a coffee shop in Spain, frequented by a wide assortment of every-day Spanish citizens. It is an interesting narrative of colorful characters. There are a few tense moments when one realizes the fact that this is the Spain of Franco's rule, and a character runs afoul of the authorities once or twice, but by and large, this is a normal novel with an interesting story to tell. It is enjoyable to read and nice to follow the various characters, but Cela will remind the astute reader in a very subtle fashion, but an unequivocal one, that this is Franco's Spain, an isolated universe of political peril, giving this novel a second tier, a dark cloud which overhangs the proceedings. Readers who enjoy the multivarious tales of small town inhabitants and their common taverns, or readers who enjoy stories of early twentieth-century Spain will enjoy this story particularly.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The fellowship of the cafe, February 19, 2004

By	Guillermo Maynez (Mexico, Distrito Federal Mexico) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

In "The Hive", a most appropriate title, Cela recreates the everyday life of Madrid in the 1940's, centered around a small cafe and the life of its employees and clients. This place is the real protagonist of the novel, as we are witnesses to the small tragedies, triumphs, fights and passions of the people who live around it. It is verily a hive, an endless show of life with all its grandiosity, sordidness, pettiness and small acts of love and redemption. For those who know the modern-day Madrid, a cosmopolitan, prosperous place, it should be reminded that this book portrays the city right after the bitter Spanish Civil War, during the first days of Franco's dictatorship. Under Franco, Spain was a poor, provincial, backwards place where the most primitve form of Roman Catholicism was the religion of state, where the Catholic Church reigned supreme and where political repression was everywhere. Life wasn't easy in Spain in those days, and though this is not by any means a political novel, it is useful to remember this as we look at the lives of the many characters in this moving and excellent story.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A canvas and people's lives, January 30, 2004

By	Kingshuk Basu (SLC, UT, US) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

It's a very refreshing book. Particularly how it's composed and how the stories develop. There is something about the artist's technique that will make you remember this book. Imagine yourself thousands of feet above the ground from where you can view the neighbourhoods of a big city. All at once. And you observe people in space and time creating a beautiful pattern of life and its richness. This could be any city anywhere in any age (though we know its Spain) because this pattern of human life is very central to our existence. Each paragraph is an incident that relates to other paragraphs in a very sketchy way and picks up its thread somewhere else when you least expect it. Also be prepared for a multi-dimensional story with one very important dimension missing - time and I think on purpose. Because it's a snapshot, it does not aspire to be a video, there in lies its beauty. Take a blank canvas and put threads of various colors in a random design and then step back. You may not remember the threads but you will not forget the impression.