Isabel Allende

Isabel Allende was born on 2 August 1942, in Lima, Peru, where her father, Tomás Allende (first cousin of Salvador Allende) was a Chilean diplomatic official. Her mother Francisca Llona annulled her marriage to Tomás in 1945 and returned to Chile with her three young children to live in her father's house in the city of Santiago de Chile. Here Allende grew up in the care of her mother's family until 1953 when her mother married Ramón Huidobro, a diplomat assigned to Bolivia and Beirut, where Allende was educated in private English-language schools.
In 1958 the family returned to Chile where she finished her studies and, in 1960, she joined the Chilean section of the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation), the United Nations organisation that aims to eradicate hunger. Two years later she married Miguel Frías, with whom she had two children (Paula, who died of porphyria in 1992, and Nicolás). The couple divorced in 1987.
After the 1973 Chilean military coup led by General Pinochet, in which her uncle, President Salvador Allende, died, she went into exile and settled in Caracas, where she began writing. In 1982, her debut novel La casa de los espíritus was published, a seminal work of magical realism that became an instant bestseller and invited comparison with Gabriel García Márquez's Cien años de soledad.
La casa de los espíritus has a strong autobiographical component, as the author draws on memories of her childhood and youth to narrate the tumultuous lives of the Trueba family saga over four generations. Inspired by the intellectual, liberal atmosphere of her family home, Allende weaves a complex narrative that focuses on the women of the Del Valle family. It is her experiences in the old family home, where her grandparents and uncles lived and where there was an intellectual and liberal atmosphere, that awaken her imagination and encourage her to tell stories. Following the vicissitudes of the women who make up this family nucleus (authentic protagonists of the plot), the historical and social causes that led to Chile’s coup d'état are explained, emphasising the importance of political discourse and denouncing inequality.
Two years later, Allende published her second novel, De amor y de sombra, in which the author publicly claims responsibility for the coup d'état and the subsequent dictatorship. In addition, the author demands its authorization and legitimization from her position, as a witness and victim. The protagonist has lost family members during the military coup and has suffered the experience of family separation. From her exile in Venezuela, the author speaks of the pain of abandoning Chile and the protagonist's experience of exile seems to equate to that of the author herself, including the hope of returning to her homeland that she herself has also experienced. The testimonial quality of De amor y de sombra and its cruder depiction of the dictatorship suggests that the text facilitated a healing of wounds ruptured by the political reality of Allende’s country.
These great works were followed by others, most promininently: Eva Luna (1987), El plan infinito (1991), Paula (1994) – a work written after the death of her daughter in which she recounts the despair of a mother at the death of her child – Afrodita (1998), Hija de la fortuna (1999), Retrato en sepia (2000) and Allende’s memoir Mi país inventado (2003).
Since 1988 Allende has lived in San Rafael (California), but usually works in a house in Sausalito, a few miles further south, where she has written many of her novels. She has been honoured at the Academy of Arts and Letters of the United States and, in May 2007, she was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Trento (Italy) in modern Euro-American language and literature.
In September 2010, Allende was awarded Chile's National Literature Prize for ‘the excellence and contribution of her work to literature, which has attracted attention in Chile and abroad, and has also been recognized by multiple distinctions and has revalued the role of the reader’. Allende became the fourth woman to receive this award, preceded by Gabriela Mistral (1951), Marta Brunet (1961) and Marcela Paz (1982). The following year, she received the Hans Christian Andersen Prize for Literature for her skills as a magical storyteller and her talent for ‘enchanting’ the public, succeeding another woman, the British J.K. Rowling.
Allende’s works, which are always at the top of the bestseller lists not only in America but also in Europe, have been translated into more than 25 languages.
Compiled by Elena López (Barcelona)
Bibliography
Novels
La casa de los espíritus (Buenos Aires: Sudamericana, 1982)
De amor y de sombra (Buenos Aires: Sudamericana, 1984)
Eva Luna (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 1987)
Cuentos de Eva Luna (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 1989)
El plan infinito (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 1991)
Paula (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 1994)
Afrodita: cuentos, recetas y otros afrodisíacos (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 1997)
Hija de la fortuna (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 1999)
La ciudad de las bestias (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2002)
Mi primer cuaderno de escritura (Barcelona: Planeta, 2003)
Mi país inventado (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2003)
El oro de Tomás Vargas y otras historias (Barcelona: Sudamericana, 2004)
El bosque de los pigmeos (Buenos Aires: Sudamericana, 2004)
La suma de los días (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2007)
Zorro (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2009)
La isla bajo el mar (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2009)
El cuaderno de Maya (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2011)
Amor (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2012)
El amante japonés (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2012)
El juego de Ripper (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2014)
Más allá del invierno (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2017)
Largo pétalo de mar (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2019)
Mujeres del alma mía (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2020)
Violeta (Barcelona: Plaza & Janés, 2022)
Translations into Foreign Languages
English
The House of the Spirits [Translation of La casa de los espíritus by Magda Bogin] (New York: Knopf, 1985)
Of Love and Shadows [Translation of De amor y de sombra by Magda Bogin] (New York: Knopf, 1987)
Eva Luna [Translation of Eva Luna by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: Knopf, 1988)
The Stories of Eva Luna [Translation of Cuentos de Eva Luna by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: Bantam, 1991)
The Infinite Plan [Translation of El plan infinito by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: HarperCollins, 1993)
Paula [Translation of Paula by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: HarperCollins, 1995)
Aphrodite: A Memoir of the Senses [Translation of Afrodita: cuentos, recetas y otros afrodisíacos by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: HarperCollins, 1998)
Daughter of Fortune [Translation of Hija de la fortuna by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: HarperCollins, 1999)
My Invented Country: A Nostalgic Journey Through Chile [Translation of Mi país inventado by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: HarperCollins, 2003)
City of the Beasts [Translation of La ciudad de las bestias by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: HarperCollins, 2002)
Forest of the Pygmies [Translation of El bosque de los pigmeos by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: HarperCollins, 2005)
Zorro [Translation of Zorro by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: HarperCollins, 2005)
Inés of My Soul [Translation of Inés del alma mía by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: HarperCollins, 2006)
Island Beneath the Sea [Translation of La isla bajo el mar by Margaret. Sayers Peden] (New York: HarperCollins, 2010)
Maya's Notebook [Translation of El cuaderno de Maya by Anne McLean] (New York: HarperCollins, 2013)
Ripper [Translation of El juego de Ripper by Ollie Brock and Frank Wynne] (New York: HarperCollins, 2014)
The Japanese Lover [Translation of El amante japonés by Nick Caistor and Amanda Hopkinson] (New York: Atria Books, 2015)
The Soul of a Woman [Translation of Mujeres del alma mía by Magda Mogin] (New York: Ballantine Books, 2021)
French
La Maison aux esprits [Translation of La casa de los espíritus by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Fayard, 1984)
D’amour et d’ombre [Translation of De amor y de sombra by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Fayard, 1986)
Eva Luna [Translation of Eva Luna by Claude Couffon] (Paris, France: Fayard, 1988)
Le Plan infini [Translation of El plan infinito by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Fayard, 1993)
Paula [Translator unknown] (Paris: Fayard, 1995)
Les Contes d'Eva Luna [Translation of Cuentos de Eva Luna by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Fayard, 1991)
Fille du destin [Translation of Hija de la fortuna by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2000)
Aphrodite, contes recettes et autres aphrodisiaques [Translation of Afrodita: cuentos, recetas y otros afrodisíacos by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2001)
Mon pays réinventé [Translation of Mi país inventado by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2003)
Le Royaume du dragon d'or [Translation of El reino del dragón de oro by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2004)
La Forêt des pygmées [Translation of El bosque de los pigmeos by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2006)
Inés de mon âme [Translation of Inés del alma mía by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2008)
La Cité des dieux sauvages [Translation of La ciudad de las bestias by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2002)
Portrait sépia [Translation of Retrato en sepia by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2001)
Le Cahier de Maya [Translation of El cuaderno de Maya by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2013)
La Somme de jours [Translation of La suma de los días by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2012)
Le Jeu de Ripper [Translation of El juego de Ripper by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2015)
L'Amant japonais [Translation of El amante japonés by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2016)
L'Île sous la mer [Translation of La isla bajo el mar by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2011)
Plus loin que l'hiver [Translation of Más allá del invierno by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2020)
Violetta [Translation of Violeta by Claude Couffon] (Paris: Grasset, 2022)
Italian
La casa degli spiriti [Translation of La casa de los espíritus by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 1983)
D'amore e ombra [Translation of De amor y de sombra by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 1985)
Eva Luna [Translation of Eva Luna by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 1988)
Eva Luna racconta [Translation of Cuentos de Eva Luna by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 1990)
Il piano infinito [Translation of El plan infinito by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 1992)
Paula [Translator unknown] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 1995)
Afrodita. Racconti, ricette e altri afrodisiaci [Translation of Afrodita: cuentos, recetas y otros afrodisíacos by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 1997)
La figlia della fortuna [Translation of Hija de la fortuna by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 1999)
Ritratto in seppia [Translation of Retrato en sepia by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2001)
La città delle bestie [Translation of La ciudad de las bestias by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2002)
Il mio paese inventato [Translation of Mi país inventado by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2003)
Il regno del drago d'oro [Translation of El reino del dragón de oro by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2003)
La foresta dei pigmei [Translation of El bosque de los pigmeos] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2004)
Zorro. L'inizio della leggenda [Translation of El Zorro: Comienza la leyenda by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2005)
Inés dell'anima mia [Translation of Inés del alma mía by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2006)
La somma dei giorni [Translation of La suma de los días by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2008)
L'isola sotto il mare [Translation of La isla bajo el mar by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2009)
Il quaderno di Maya [Translation of El cuaderno de Maya by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2011)
Amore [Translation of Amor by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2013)
Il gioco di Ripper [Translation of El juego de Ripper by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2013)
L'amante giapponese [Translation of El amante japonés by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2015)
Oltre l'inverno [Translation of Más allá del invierno by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2017)
Lungo petalo di mare [Translation of Largo pétalo de mar by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2019)
Donne dell'anima mia [Translation of Mujeres del alma mía by Regina Galasso] (Milan: Feltrinelli, 2020)
Criticism
Arróspide, Amparo: ‘Best seller y paraliteratura: la obra de Isabel Allende’ (Sincronía, 25, 2002, p. 17)
Avelar, Idelber: ‘La casa de los espíritus: La Historia del Mito y el Mito de la Historia’ (Revista chilena de literatura, 43, 1993, pp. 67-74)
Brown, Meg: ‘The Allende/Mastretta Phenomenon in West Germany: When Opposite Cultures Attract’ (Confluencia: Revista Hispánica de Cultura y Literatura, 10, 1994)
Cantero Rosales, María Ángeles: El "boom femenino" hispanoamericano de los años ochenta. Un proyecto narrativo de "ser mujer" (Granada: Universidad de Granada, 2004)
Castillo de Berchenko, Adriana: ‘Los signos de la diferencia en Isabel Allende’ in La narrativa de Isabel Allende: Claves de una marginalidad ed. by Adriana Castillo de Berchenko and Pablo Berchenko (Perpignan: Université de Perpignan, 1990)
Galarce, Carmen J: ‘La novela chilena del exilio (1973-1987): El caso de Isabel Allende’ (PhD Dissertation, Ohio State University, 1993) available online at https://etd.ohiolink.edu/apexprod/rws_olink/r/1501/10?clear=10&p10_accession_num=osu1243527266
Snodgrass, Mary Ellen: A Literary Companion: Isabel Allende (London: McFarland, 2013)
Oviedo, José Miguel: Historia de la literatura hispanoamericana, Vol. 4: De Borges al presente (Madrid: Alianza editorial, 2001)
Reisz, Susana: ‘Hipótesis sobre el tema escritura femenina e Hispanidad’ (Tropelías: revista de teoría de la literatura y literatura comparada, 1, pp. 199-213)
Interviews/in the Media
Antón, Jacinto: ‘Isabel Allende: Lo primero no es hacer literatura, sino tocar el corazón de la gente’ (El País, 20 November 1987) available online at https://elpais.com/diario/1987/11/20/cultura/564361211_850215.html
Arroyo, Francesc: ‘Isabel Allende afirma que solo la novela permite entrar en el alma de los personajes’ (El País, 17 November 1984) available online at https://elpais.com/diario/1984/11/17/cultura/469494003_850215.html
Basualdo, Ana: ‘Isabel Allende: la casa de América’ (La Vanguardia, 26 November 1982) available online at http://hemeroteca.lavanguardia.com/preview/1982/11/26/pagina-43/32951459/pdf.html?
Camozzi, Rolando: ‘De amor y de sombra’ (ABC, 19 January 1985) available online at http://hemeroteca.abc.es/nav/Navigate.exe/hemeroteca/madrid/abc/1983/01/08/043.html
Gómez Ruiz, Lara: ‘Isabel Allende: Cada día escribía a mi madre y tengo guardadas unas 24.000 cartas’ (La Vanguardia, 30 January 2022) available online at https://www.lavanguardia.com/cultura/20220130/8021220/isabel-allende-violeta-entrevista-cartas-madre.html
Iriart, Carlos: ‘Isabel Allende. Escribo atrapada entre el amor y la violencia’ (El País, 17 October 1985) available online at https://elpais.com/diario/1985/10/17/ultima/498351605_850215.html
Martí Gómez, José: ‘Isabel Allende tras el hachazo y para que no lo borre el viento’ (La Vanguardia, 14 November 1984) available online at http://hemeroteca.lavanguardia.com/preview/1984/11/14/pagina19/32845779/pdf.html?search=Isabel%20Allende%2
Peri Rossi, Cristina: ‘Historia, amor, violencia’ (La Vanguardia, 6 January 1983) available online at http://hemeroteca.lavanguardia.com/preview/1983/01/06/pagina-35/32962081/pdf.html?
Sánchez-Mellado, Luz: ‘Isabel Allende: el amor me dura 20 años’ (El País, 1 June 2019) available online at https://elpais.com/cultura/2019/05/31/actualidad/1559318797_846244.html
Torres, Maruja: ‘Isabel Allende recoge en su primera novela la tradición oral de su familia’ (El País, 24 November 1982) available online at https://elpais.com/diario/1982/11/24/cultura/406940410_850215.html