mereritchie 's review for:

The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

5.0

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“The House of the Spirits” book is the first magical realism novel that I have read and it was heavier at times that I anticipated. The story follows essentially the family built by Clara and Esteban Trueba, from their childhoods. Clara is a spectacular clairvoyant character; Esteban- well- I definitely adamantly hated him at times. It is set in Chile and the political struggle between socialism and the Conservative party plays a big part in the story. Much is based on real events and folks that I knew basically nothing about so I appreciate that it opened my eyes to that history. I’m not exactly sure what else to say other than it is a wonderfully written story and was very engaging to read. TW: there is some sexual violence and regular violence that was a bit hard to read at times. If you are okay with that- I would definitely recommend it. To give a glimpse into the unique character of Clara, a quote from here on page 290- “Just as when we come into the world, when we die we are afraid of the unknown. But the fear is something from within us that has nothing to do with reality. Dying is like being born: just a change.”