Violeta
Ratings28
Average rating4
15
Ratings28
Average rating4
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • This sweeping novel from the author of A Long Petal of the Sea tells the epic story of Violeta Del Valle, a woman whose life spans one hundred years and bears witness to the greatest upheavals of the twentieth century. “An immersive saga about a passion-filled life.”—People Violeta comes into the world on a stormy day in 1920, the first girl in a family with five boisterous sons. From the start, her life is marked by extraordinary events, for the ripples of the Great War are still being felt, even as the Spanish flu arrives on the shores of her South American homeland almost at the moment of her birth. Through her father’s prescience, the family will come through that crisis unscathed, only to face a new one as the Great Depression transforms the genteel city life she has known. Her family loses everything and is forced to retreat to a wild and beautiful but remote part of the country. There, she will come of age, and her first suitor will come calling. She tells her story in the form of a letter to someone she loves above all others, recounting times of devastating heartbreak and passionate affairs, poverty and wealth, terrible loss and immense joy. Her life is shaped by some of the most important events of history: the fight for women’s rights, the rise and fall of tyrants, and ultimately not one, but two pandemics. Through the eyes of a woman whose unforgettable passion, determination, and sense of humor carry her through a lifetime of upheaval, Isabel Allende once more brings us an epic that is both fiercely inspiring and deeply emotional.
Reviews with the most likes.
I have read and enjoyed several books by Isabel Allende, and this one is no exception. Told as the (fictional) autobiography of a 100 year old woman on her deathbed, this book nonetheless has a large cast of characters and settings. As usual, Allende deals with the topics of revolution and politics in South America, and I was interested enough to do some searching to determine what nations she referenced.
Violeta was born in 1920 during the influenza pandemic, and is now living in our current time of the coronavirus pandemic. These two events bookend her life, which is also touched by revolution, war, natural disasters, and personal/family tragedies. This book reads like hearing someone reminisce about their life, which could be boring but in this case I found it to be entertaining and thought-provoking. Because we only hear Violeta's point of view, it is interesting to consider if the other characters would tell their parts of the story consistently or not.
I found myself wishing a bit for some of Allende's magical realism, but aside from that, I really enjoyed this book, and would recommend it for fans of Allende.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.
Wow. What a beautiful story! I know the story is fictional, but it was told with so much detail and soul that if you had told me it was an autobiography, I would have believed you. Historical fiction is my favorite genre of fiction, and this book hits all the right spots for me.
I can't believe it took me this long to pick up an Isabel Allende book; I will definitely be back for more!
“Es imposible describir la experiencia de esfumarse en el vacío negro del universo, desprendida del cuerpo, los sentimientos y la memoria, sin el cordón umbilical que nos une a la vida. Nada quedaba, ni presente, ni pasado, y al mismo tiempo yo era parte de todo lo que existe”.
Violeta es de esas personas que te caen bien, pero que de repente se tira comentarios medios raros (a veces sólo por ignorancia) y no sabes bien cómo responderle. La narración es muy poética y entretenida de leer; me mantuvo con ganas de saber más con cada capítulo que terminaba.
Nunca se menciona en qué país se desarrolla su vida, pero es fácil saber que se trata de Chile por cada hecho histórico que Violeta narra en sus 100 años de vida: la toma de los terrenos en el sur, los terremotos, la elección democrática de un presidente socialista, el golpe de estado, la pandemia.
La mención al feminismo, la diferencia de clases sociales y, sobre todo, lo que se vivió durante la década de los 70's hasta el fin de la dictarura, son los espacios en los que sentí más empatía por Violeta y su familia. Sin embargo, como ya mencioné, a veces Violeta resulta ser muy buena para criticar a ciertos personajes o a contarle a su nieto (a quien le escribe sus vivencias) ciertas experiencias que si mi abuela lo hubiese hecho, me habría hecho sentir mucha vergüenza ajena.
No le doy 5 estrellas sólo porque me sobraron las tantas menciones religiosas y me faltó más de ese realismo mágico que esperaba encontrar.
