Literary Annotation

Author: Isabel Allende

Title: The House of the Spirits (La casa de los espíritus)

Genre: Literary Fiction

Publication Date: 1982

Number of Pages: 488 pages

Geographical Setting: Chile

Time Period: Spans from the early to the mid-20th century

Series: N/A

Trigger warnings: Abuse, rape, violence (I’m not going to be very specific about those things in my summary. Rape is pervasive throughout the story, and many children of the main cast of characters are conceived in this manner)

Plot Summary: It’s difficult to summarize this novel, as it follows different generations of people with interwoven affairs, scandals, marriages, murders, and rapes. The central family that most of the story revolves around are the de Valle family and as the story goes on the Trueba family becomes important as well. The early parts of the story focus on two sisters of that family, named Clara and Rosa. Clara possesses some sort of clairvoyant power and predicts correctly that her sister will die. The story then follows Rosa’s former fiancé, Esteban, in greater detail and his son, also named Esteban, becomes one of the main characters. Clara’s daughter and granddaughter, Blanca and Alba, respectively, become major players in the story. It is revealed at the end that Alba was the narrator of the story the entire time. The story is very complex and is full of magical realism (especially regarding Clara). Postcolonial politics, specifically involving socialism, in South America are an important aspect, as many of the main cast are politically active. Violence toward women is another main theme of the story, as the majority of the women in this story are brutalized in various ways.

Subject Headings: Magical Realism, Latin American, Family Sagas

Appeal: Sweeping, Lyrical

Terms that best describe this book: Large Cast, Dramatic, Complex, Family Saga, Character Driven

Similar Authors and Works

Relevant Non-Fiction Works and Authors

1. Garcia Márquez, G. (1986). Clandestine in Chile. Henry Holt.

This book was published a few years after Allende’s novel and addresses the Chilean government under Pinochet. Garcia Márquez (who was Colombian) is also a classic author of magical realism, so readers might be interested in his take on this.

2. Orwell, G. (1938). Homage to Catalonia. Mariner Books.

This book might be interesting for someone interested in politics between nationalists/fascists/authoritarians and Marxists/socialists/etc. Franco isn’t so different from Pinochet, so there might be cross appeal for the subject.

3. Allende, I. (2003). My invented country. Harper Collins.

This is Allende’s account of her life and how her uncle, the former president of Chile, Salvador Allende was assassinated, resulting in her exile. There are autobiographic components to The House of the Spirits, and this relates to those.

Relevant Fiction Works and Authors