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This thread is for Violeta by Isabel Allende as part of our 2022 Challenge in the South American/Latin American category!

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I'm in.

Katy wrote: "I'm in."

I started this morning and was immediately drawn in.

Jalilah wrote: "I started this morning and was immediately drawn in."

Me too, I kept taking little reading breaks throughout the day so that I could read just one more chapter.

I'm planning to join you but all my English reads are on hold till my new ereader is delivered next week. It is so weird to have no book at hand!

This really is beautiful writing, I am very tempted to get a Spanish edition to read it in the original language.

I just finished part three last night. Just barely a tiny touch of magic realism, mostly historical fiction, but I am not disappointed.

Same here! I’m not disappointed at all! The only reason I mentioned it being mainly realistic historical fiction is for group members who might be expecting magical realism, myths or fantasy.
I’m up to chapter 13 and totally loving it! If I had the time I’d sit down and read it straight through.

I finished last night. In a way it is a stormy love story to Chile.

Jalilah wrote: "Same here! I’m not disappointed at all! The only reason I mentioned it being mainly realistic historical fiction is for group members who might be expecting magical realism, myths or fantasy.
I’m ..."

I've read other books by her with no magical realism!

I'll either start this Thursday or it will be Monday next week.

Up to now, I’ve read up to part 4, the only aspect that seems surreal or mythical is the medicine woman Yaima. She is estimated to be over 100 when Violeta is a child and she’s still around when she’s middle aged

I found this interesting article. There are a few spoilers

Like all Allende’s books set in Chile this book moved me in a very deep way. In fact, I was crying, bawling my eyes out in the last chapter. I tried to explain to my husband and son it’s not because it’s anything tragic, as dying at the age of 100 is not tragic, rather it’s just so close to how life really is. I loved this book and Allende has the gift to totally draw me in to the point I keep looking up travel videos of Chile to get an idea of what it looks like.

I started it today and I'm enjoying it! I didn't feel immediately drawn in, but I am liking it overall. I feel as if I've read the beginning so many times: a difficult childbirth, a mother assuming it's a boy and then it's a girl. It's fine, I just can think of three novels just this year that had similar openings, ha! At least the mother doesn't die. I'm also having a bit of trouble keeping all the characters straight on the audiobook. While I love audiobooks, I do find books with lots of characters more difficult to follow.

I think all the novels I've read by Allende feature once wealthy families becoming impoverished.

I'm currently about a third of the way through. I might finish it tomorrow.

I did not immediately like Violeta as much as I usually like Allende’s female characters. It bothered me that she stayed with Julian in spite of all his abuse and especially once she knew about what kind of work he did. Then when her son became politically active I found her annoying that she could not see or acknowledge what was really happening in their country. However as the novel progressed and she started changing, starting with what happened with her daughter and son, ( I won’t say now in case you haven’t gotten to these parts yet Margaret), she begins to evolve as a person. Late in life but I loved this!

Okay I ended up really enjoying this! It took me a bit but I ended up being swept up in the story and by the end I was crying too, even though it's a good ending!

She definitely stayed with Julian too long, though I do know women in my family who had similar experiences and also stayed with their abusive husbands. I loved how she changed at the end of the novel.

Question, (view spoiler)[ there's a part where Violeta sees Julian putting sunscreen on her daughter and makes her come to her because Julian seemed too lustful, and then the daughter becomes terrified of Julian. To me, he was grooming and raping her, but Violeta never admits this to herself. Do other readers agree with my interpretation? (hide spoiler)]

I'm not going to use this on my around the world challenge because it's not mythic/folklorish enough (I also already have 2-3 for the category), but I'm glad I read this nonetheless!

Besides Violeta, did y'all have a favorite character? I really liked the governess, Miss Taylor. (I listened to an audiobook so if I misspell character names I apologize.)

Regarding Julian and Nivea (view spoiler)[I also suspected the father was possibly making some kind of sexual advances and when the daughter realized it it repulsed her and that’s why she left. (hide spoiler)]

Regarding the ending, yes a 100 year old dying after having had a full life is not sad, but it was just very moving. I tried to explain this to my husband and son who were puzzled by why I was sobbing!

I also found it refreshing that Violeta found love several times late in life.
I think this aspect mirrors Allende’s own life. She married in her 20s had 2 kids, divorced and was single for a long time. She met her second husband when she was in her late 40s. I was sad to read a some years ago that she got divorced but now she married again 2 years ago. She’s 79 I think
According to an interview I read the character Violeta was greatly inspired by Allende’s own mother who recently passed away at 98. The two were very close

Oh what books are you going to read for this challenge Margaret?
I counted this book for the challenge but if I find something else I’d prefer to use that

I love that she did so much and really came into her purpose as an older adult! Not only with the romances, but also by setting up the nonprofit. It's refreshing to see older women in love and getting stuff done.

Thanks for sharing the article about the book! I didn't realize Allende had lost a daughter.

As a side note, I'm looking at pictures of the Chilean Patagonia where much of the novel takes place and it's breathtakingly beautiful!

I read The Lost Dreamer by Lizz Huerta and Fevered Star by Rebecca Roanhorse. But did we decide Rebecca Roanhorse's series should be in North American?

I think you would find The Lost Dreamer too fantastical. I could be wrong though!

Margaret wrote: "I love that she did so much and really came into her purpose as an older adult! Not only with the romances, but also by setting up the nonprofit. It's refreshing to see older women in love and gett..."

Yes, I absolutely loved that Violeta became politically active late in life.
It’s sad but Paula is about Isabel Allende losing her daughter. It is nonfiction but reads like a novel. She tells about her own life, her childhood, her days as a young journalist ( she says she was awful at it because she had the tendency to make stuff up 🤣) , her relationship with Salvador Allende, her fathers cousin and his family, having to leave Chile for Venezuela after the coup, marrying and having kids , getting divorced, writing her first novels, moving to the US. It’s fascinating even though it’s tragic because she loses her daughter

Margaret wrote: " I read The Lost Dreamer by Lizz Huerta and Fevered Star by Rebecca Roanhorse. But did we decide Rebecca Roanhorse's series should be in North American.."

I think we decided people chose it either or. Author is North American but setting Latin American. I will be reading it for North American.

Jalilah wrote: "I think we decided people chose it either or. Author is North American but setting Latin American. I will be reading it for North American."

Ah okay, that's right! I have 2+ for both categories so it actually doesn't matter much where I put it.

Jalilah wrote: "It’s sad but Paula is about Isabel Allende losing her daughter. It is nonfiction but reads like a novel. She tells about her own life, her childhood, her days as a young journalist"

I might have to read that!

As a journalist, I have to say sometimes it's hard not to fudge things a bit, lol. But sometimes just a little revising would make a much better story! It's probably a good thing I just cover book and publishing news. :)

I just finished the book today. Just realized this was a group read today... LOL. I liked the book. It goes though the 20th century. That's all I will say.

Michele wrote: "I just finished the book today. Just realized this was a group read today... LOL. I liked the book. It goes though the 20th century. That's all I will say."

Ha! Feel free to say more. :) I really liked how it spanned a century. It's fascinating to see both Violeta's character growth and the changes in Chile.

Michele wrote: "I just finished the book today. Just realized this was a group read today... LOL. I liked the book. It goes though the 20th century. That's all I will say."

Yes feel free to say more! We’ve all read it!