The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende

image taken from amazon.com

Phew, what a book!

The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende follows three generations of intertwined families centered around Esteban Trueba, his family, his fortune, and his demise.  The book is narrated partially by Trueba, but mostly by his granddaughter, Alba who recounts her family history beginning from her great grandmother's, Clara, childhood.  The novel also intertwines the political upheaval of Chile (as many of Isabel Allende's books do) which plays a critical role in the lives of the Trueba family.

I have read many of Ms. Allende's books prior to this including, Daughter of Fortune and Portrait in Sepia.  This book caught my eye after watching the movie (with actresses Meryl Streep and Winona Ryder released in 1993) on Netflix.  I've enjoyed Ms. Allende's books, but since the story lines are similar and the writing style is consistent, I would recommend reading them between other books.

Isabel Allende's novels are complex, dark, usually about love and loss of love, almost always include a political event, and usually span generations of one family.  I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with Ms. Allende's writing.  On the one hand, her text includes a richness that is emphasized with her choice of words and the manner and meaning she uses them in, but as a result I often find myself needing to read with a dictionary (maybe that suggests I'm lacking in vocabulary more than anything!).  Isabel Allende's novels are generally long (relatively speaking) as they transgress through multiple generations which allows the reader to become completely engulfed in the story line.

The House of Spirits is spiritual, but also real. Clara's (Alba's great grandmother) clairvoyance and ability to see the future sets the tone of the novel lifting it from reality to the unknown.  Eventually as Clara's importance to the story line fades and she herself ages, reality becomes more predominant, but the sense of spirituality remains in the novel as it eventually creeps it's way into Esteban Trueba (Clara's stubborn, head-strong husband) way of thinking.

The beauty with which Ms. Allende tells the stories of various intertwined lovers is also remarkable.  As soon as the lovers passion begins to soak in to your mind, a life event, tragedy, or social circumstance throws a bend in their pathway and it takes another turn, one unexpected or one you may not like.  The commonality of this experience is also striking, but I have to wonder if it's always so dramatic in real life?

Overall, I loved this novel and I would pick up another novel by Isabel Allende in a heart beat.  This book is completely different from the movie, but as a result one is not necessarily better than the other.  They simply are stories loosely similar based around the same set of events and ideas.   This novel is not a fast read, it does take some time to make your way through, but it's worth the time!