Isabel Allende

A Tribute to Isabel Allende Honor should be given to Allende, whose works sometimes contain aspects of the â€Å"magic realistic† tradition, is one of the first successful women novelists in Latin America. She is largely famous for her contributions to Latin-American literature, novels such as The House of the Spirits (La casa de los espiritus (1982) and City of the Beasts (La ciudad de las bestias) (2002), which have been hugely successful. She has written novels based in part on her own experiences, often focusing on the experiences of women, weaving myth and realism together. She has lectured and done extensive book tours and has taught literature at ten US colleges. Having adopted American citizenship in 2003, she currently resides in California along with her husband. Professional Life Born in Lima, Peru, her Chilean diplomat father and her mother divorced and she lived with her mother and grandparents. She worked first as a secretary and then as a journalist in print, on television and in movie documentaries. After the overthrow and assassination in 1973 of her uncle, Salvador Allende, president of Chile, Isabel Allende and her husband and children left for safety in Venezuela. It was in her exile that she began to write The House of the Spirits, her first novel, which was based on her own family and the politics of Chile. She continued to produce novels based in part on her own experience, often focusing on the experience of women, weaving myth and realism together. She has lectured and done extensive book tours, and has taught literature at colleges in Virginia, New Jersey and California. Her 1995 work, Paula, is based on the extended coma and death of her daughter in 1992. She was divorced from her first husband, Miguel Frias, an engineer. In 1988, she married William Gordon, a lawyer. Personal Life Allende thinks is very strange to talk about her because her life it is not just a list of dates and events. In reality the most important things about her life happened in the secret chambers of her heart and have no place in a biography. According to her own words, her most significant achievements are not her books, but the love she shares with a few people, especially her family, and the ways in which she has tried to help others. When she was young, she often felt desperate: so much pain in the world and so little she could do to alleviate it. But now she looks back at her life and feels satisfied because few days went by without at least trying. A day at a time, a person at time; in the end it adds up! Here are a few things she considers important and you won't find in a list of her publications and accomplishments: ? It is important to be kind, be truthful, and take care of others and herself. Women her age, as elders of the village, have a duty to care for the young, especially girls. If the world is ever going to heal, it will be women who will make it so. Today's girls are tomorrow's women. We cannot leave them to fend for themselves. ?She has been empowered by education, reproductive rights and economic independence. Young women who are uneducated and have no skills, who are not in control of their own bodies and fertility, and who cannot support themselves, can become destitute and be victimized. Each of us must act without delay to empower girls to take control of their lives, even if they stumble and fall a hundred times. With our help, they can succeed. ?In every human being there is a core of shining dignity and courage. Conclusion In 1981, the world gained one of Latin America most remarkable writers with distinguished contributions as a literary artist and humanitarian. Works by the writer â€Å"The House of the Spirits†, (novel) Spain 1982 â€Å"Of Love and Shadows†, (novel) Spain 1984 â€Å"Eva Luna'†, (novel) Spain 1985 Stories of Eva Luna†, (short stories) Spain 1989 â€Å"The Infinite Plan†, (novel) Spain 1991 â€Å"Paula†, (novel) Spain 1994 â€Å"Aphrodite† (recipes, stories and other aphrodisiacs) Spain 1997 â€Å"Daughter of Fortune†, (novel) Spain 1999 â€Å"Portrait in Sepia†, (novel) Spain 2000 â€Å"The City of the Beasts† (young adult novel) Spain 2002 â€Å"My Invented Country†, ( novel) Spain 2003 â€Å"Kingdom of the Golden Dragon†, (young adult novel) Spain 2003 â€Å"Forest of the Pygmies†, (young adult novel) 2005 â€Å"Zorro†, (novel) Spain 2005 Ines of My Soul†, (novel) Spain 2006 â€Å"The Sum of Our Days†, (novel) Spain 2007 Works about the writer Isabel Allende, Award-Winning Latin American Author by Mary Main (2005) Bautista Gutierrez, Gloria and Corrales-Martin, Norma; Pinceledas Literarias Latinoamericanas, John Wiley and Sons, 2004 â€Å"Allende is all about storytelling. † Toronto Star (Canada) 23 Oct. 2002. www. epnet. com www. isabelallende. com www. ted. com. php/talks/isabel_allende_tells_tales_of_passion. html www. motherjones. com/arts/qa/1994/09/allende. html