isabel allende a long petal of the sea review

As the novel spans from his birth, way into his middle-age years, his is perhaps the clearest representation of what it meant to be an immigrant during this time and place, and as the novel progresses, his presence becomes more and more felt. We see him struggle to make a legitimate place for himself in this changing world, and he only really see his character begin to develop properly once he begins a new life in America, away from the limitations and expectations he experienced in Chile. Unlike his caregivers, he considers himself Chilean, and knows very little about his Spanish heritage. In terms of Marcel – the child of Roser and the largely absent Guillem – it was fascinating to see how Allende portrayed his growth into adulthood, and the influence that this backdrop of conflict had on his life decisions. While the story mainly follows the viewpoint of Victor, two of the strongest and most interesting characters in the novel, and ones that display this notion of adapting and change best, are Marcel and Ofelia. Characters are silent for chapters, disappearing from the pages and lurking only in the background, then return with a flourish, showcasing their changed nature. They mould and adapt with their surroundings just as ‘real’ people do, something that too often, authors forget. Just like the shifting attitudes that span many decades, the characters in A Long Petal of the Sea are far from stagnant. Their layered personalities, deep emotional bonds with each other, and the way that they move through the novel, carry the prose right through to the end. Instead, Allende’s characters do the work for her. How was it that Allende was managing to place me in these very real historical situations, surrounded by characters that ( she reveals) were inspired by people she knew at the time, without paragraphs and paragraphs of scene setting, world building, or carefully chosen metaphors? At first, this almost stripped down way of writing took me by surprise. We turn each page to see what each character does next, and the journey that he/she takes against this tumultuous backdrop. Instead, focus is given to the characters – while the historical events are detailed and understood, the book is very much character-driven.

The novel is complex and heavy in its subject, so Allende’s prose is simple yet impactful, freeing the reader from the weight of description that may have otherwise jeopardised the narrative. Rather, Allende showers her pages with love, compassion, and shows the reader that kindness and hope reach far beyond the perceived hatred of the times. Despite being set against the chaotic backdrop of work, the book is far from bleak. A rich and compelling novel, A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende is an ambitious and outstanding feat of literature, spanning multiple families, generations, and continents, taking the reader on a journey through key moments of recent history.

Isabel allende a long petal of the sea review