Synopsis
Novelist Isabel Allende writes about Chile, her homeland, including her childhood there as the niece of Salvador Allende, the country's geography, Chilean food, the divisions between the classes, the influence of the Church, and the way nostalgia for her country has influenced her writing.
| Details | | Publication Date: | 2003-05-01 | | Narrated by: | Blair Brown | | Edition Description: | Unabridged |
| Size | | Height: | 5.0 in | | Width: | 5.0 in | | Thickness: | 0.5 in | | Weight: | 5.6 oz |
Publisher's Note
Although she claims to have been an outsider in her native land -- "I never fit in anywhere, not into my family, my social class, or the religion fate bestowed on me" -- Isabel Allende carries with her even today the mark of the politics, myth, and magic of her homeland, Chile. In My Invented Country she explores the role of memory and nostalgia in shaping her life, her books, and that most intimate connection to her place of origin. The military coup and violent death of her uncle, Salvador Allende Gossens, on September 11, 1973, sent her into exile and transformed her into a writer. The terrorist attack of September 11, 2001 on her newly adopted homeland, the U.S., brought fourth from Allende an overdue acknowledgment that she had indeed left home. My Invented Country speaks compellingly to all of us who try to retain a coherent inner life and a sense of humor in a world full of contradictions.
Industry Reviews
"Dazzling as a kaleidoscope: an artful tumbling and knocking that throws light and reveals strange depths."
Kirkus Reviews (04/01/2003)
"MY IMAGINARY COUNTRY is full of holes that can be filled only by consulting the pertinent passages from Allende's earlier novels and memoirs. This can make frustrating reading for those who don't have her entire oeuvre in their heads or at their fingertips....The book's random nature is reinforced by her casual, chatty tone, which is always charming and entertaining....Her observations about how her initial estrangement and later exile from Chile have come to form her and influence her writing are interesting and sensitively expressed....[A]n enticing yet frustrating book that will send many readers back to the source (or the sources)--her novels."
New York Times Book Review - Peter Cameron (06/08/2003)
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