Stephanie Jane reviewed Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende
Epic!
4 stars
A Long Petal Of The Sea is the second of two pretty epic emigration novels I have read this month. Encompassing a greater scope in time and distance travelled, Allende's novel is certainly the more ambitious but I didn't find I connected as well with the main character as I did reading Farewell, Mama Odessa by Emil Draitser. That said, I was still fascinated by Victor and Roser's lives and I learned so much about the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War. That war seems so often to be overlooked in favour of Second World War stories, but its complexities and human narratives are just as compelling. I've previously listened to Homage To Catalonia by George Orwell and felt that A Long Petal Of The Sea often shared the same feel of being a memoir rather than fiction. Allende has obviously researched her subject in great detail and the effort …
A Long Petal Of The Sea is the second of two pretty epic emigration novels I have read this month. Encompassing a greater scope in time and distance travelled, Allende's novel is certainly the more ambitious but I didn't find I connected as well with the main character as I did reading Farewell, Mama Odessa by Emil Draitser. That said, I was still fascinated by Victor and Roser's lives and I learned so much about the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War. That war seems so often to be overlooked in favour of Second World War stories, but its complexities and human narratives are just as compelling. I've previously listened to Homage To Catalonia by George Orwell and felt that A Long Petal Of The Sea often shared the same feel of being a memoir rather than fiction. Allende has obviously researched her subject in great detail and the effort shows across the authenticity of her descriptions and her characters' actions.
Where I struggled somewhat with A Long Petal Of The Sea was with believing in the central relationship between Victor and Roser. I appreciate that theirs wasn't a romantic relationship in the conventional sense, but there was still meant to be a strong bond and I couldn't really feel that. Their other philanderings had sensuality and a sense of excitement, even while conducted away from the reader. Allende puts across a genuine sense of the restrictiveness of upper class Chilean society, especially in its contrast with the desperation of the Spanish exiles. Through the years of this novel we really do see all extremes of human existence as well as the lengths to which societies will go to protect their preferred ideologies. For Victor and Roser this means appearing to be on a wheel of recurring nightmare scenarios and I can't begin to imagine how devastating that must have been for the real people who inspired this story.
A Long Petal Of The Sea is only the third Isabel Allende book I have read, but after each of the previous two I promised myself to make a bigger effort to search out more of her work. I love her writing style and the way she convincingly portrays characters across a range of social classes and philosophical beliefs. It's difficult enough to get readers to understand sympathetic characters, let alone ones who who espouse opposing views. A Long Petal Of The Sea does just that whilst also depicting the changing Spanish and Chilean political landscapes over several decades. This isn't the easiest of reads, but I felt it was absolutely worth my time.