Isabel Allende
Author of The House of the Spirits
About the Author
Isabel Allende was born in 1942 in Lima, Peru, the daughter of a Chilean diplomat. When her parents separated, young Isabel moved with her mother to Chile, where she spent the rest of her childhood. She married at the age of 19 and had two children, Paula and Nicolas. Her uncle was Salvador show more Allende, the president of Chile. When he was overthrown in the coup of 1973, she fled Chile, moving to Caracas, Venezuela. While living in Venezuela, Allende began writing her novels, many of them exploring the close family bonds between women. Her first novel, The House of the Spirits, has been translated into 27 languages, and was later made into a film. She then wrote Of Love and Shadows, Eva Luna, and The Stories of Eva Luna, all set in Latin America. The Infinite Plan was her first novel to take place in the United States. She explores the issues of human rights and the plight of immigrants and refugees in her novel, In The Midst of Winter. In Paula, Allende wrote her memoirs in connection with her daughter's illness and death. She delved into the erotic connections between food and love in Aphrodite: A Memoir of the Senses. In addition to writing books, Allende has worked as a TV interviewer, magazine writer, school administrator, and a secretary at a U.N. office in Chile. She received the 1996 Harold Washington Literacy Award. She lives in California. Her title Maya's Notebook made The New York Times Best Seller List in 2013. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Disambiguation Notice:
Isabel Allende Llona (b. 1942), Chilean born novelist (US citizen since 2003). Do not confuse with María Isabel Allende Bussi (b. 1945), daughter of former Chilean president Salvador Allende; cousin of the novelist.
Image credit: Photo by Robert Birnbaum (courtesy of the photographer)
Series
Works by Isabel Allende
Lovers at the Museum - story 109 copies
[unidentified works] 12 copies
Giving Birth, Finding Form: Three Writers Explore Their Lives, Their Loves, Their Art (1993) 5 copies
Was ik maar thuisgebleven 3 copies
Clarisa [short story] 2 copies
El sexo y yo 2 copies
Mi País Inventado 1 copy
මායාවාස 1 copy
ඊවා කී අපූරු කතා 1 copy
මුහුද යට දිවයින 1 copy
Il regno del drago d'oro 1 copy
Kraljestvo zlatega zmaja 1 copy
Hija de la fortuna 1 copy
QYTETI I SHTAZEVE 1 copy
Pygměrnas skog 1 copy
Perla The Mighty Dog 1 copy
Um lugar sem nome 1 copy
The Judge's Wife 1 copy
The Girls 1 copy
Cuentos Selectos 1 copy
Impunity 1 copy
mio zio, un eroe del secolo 1 copy
Passie en liefde 1 copy
Paula, Part 1 1 copy
Simple María 1 copy
Revenge 1 copy
The Little Heidelberg 1 copy
La abuela Panchita 1 copy
Maya naplója 1 copy
Associated Works
Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent (1971) — Foreword, some editions — 2,538 copies
This I Believe: The Personal Philosophies of Remarkable Men and Women (2006) — Contributor — 1,094 copies
My Bookstore: Writers Celebrate Their Favorite Places to Browse, Read, and Shop (2012) — Contributor — 561 copies
Other Voices, Other Vistas: Short Stories from Africa, China, India, Japan, and Latin America (1992) — Contributor — 187 copies
Why We Write: 20 Acclaimed Authors on How and Why They Do What They Do (2013) — Contributor — 182 copies
Short Stories by Latin American Women: The Magic and the Real (1990) — Foreword; Contributor — 144 copies
Sudden Fiction Latino: Short-Short Stories from the United States and Latin America (2010) — Contributor — 69 copies
Secret Weavers: Stories of the Fantastic by Women Writers of Argentina and Chile (1991) — Contributor — 23 copies
Introducción a la literatura hispanoamericana : de la conquista al siglo XX (1997) — Contributor — 20 copies
Die Geschichtenerzähler: Neues und Unbekanntes von Allende bis Zafón (suhrkamp taschenbuch) (2008) — Contributor — 5 copies
Fotspår : noveller ur Sveriges radio P1:s serie Författarskap på fötter (2003) — Contributor — 5 copies
New Internationalist #535: January-February 2022: Romani Lives Matter (2022) — Interviewee — 2 copies
Palabras de mujer — Contributor — 2 copies
Abarat and Other Fantasy Tales for Teens: Abarat, City of the Beasts, Coraline (2002) — some editions — 2 copies
Å herregud, mitt i semestern : en antologi : [möten med sjukdom, lidande och vård] (1999) — Contributor — 1 copy
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Allende Llona, Isabel Angélica
- Birthdate
- 1942-08-02
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- Peru (birth)
USA (naturalized)
Chile (naturalized) - Country (for map)
- Chile
- Birthplace
- Lima, Peru
- Places of residence
- Lima, Peru
Santiago, Chile
Brussels, Belgium
Caracas, Venezuela
San Francisco, California, USA
Beirut, Lebanon (show all 9)
La Paz, Bolivia
San Rafael, California, USA
Spain - Occupations
- novelist
translator
dramatist
journalist
teacher (literature)
reporter (show all 9)
documentary filmmaker
TV personality
poet - Relationships
- Allende, Salvador (cousin)
- Organizations
- Isabel Allende Foundation
- Awards and honors
- Gabriela Mistral Order of Merit (1994)
Feminist of the Year Award ( [1994])
Academia de Artes y Ciencias (member)
American Academy of Arts and Letters ( [2004])
Read About Me Literary Award ( [1996])
Dorothy and Lilian Gish Prize (show all 12)
National Prize for Literature Chile (2010)
Flag Bearer, Olympics Opening Ceremony (2006)
Honorary Degree, D.H.L. (San Francisco State University, 2008)
Honorary Degree, D.Litt. (Harvard University ∙ 2014)
Anisfield-Wolf Lifetime Achievement Award (2017)
Carl Sandburg Literary Award (2013) - Short biography
- Born in Peru and raised in Chile, Isabel Allende is the author of eight novels, including, most recently, Violeta, Zorro, Portrait in Sepia, and Daughter of Fortune. She has also written a collection of stories; three memoirs, including My Invented Country and Paula; and a trilogy of children's novels. Her books have been translated into more than twenty-seven languages and have become bestsellers across four continents. In 2004 she was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Isabel Allende lives in California.
- Disambiguation notice
- Isabel Allende Llona (b. 1942), Chilean born novelist (US citizen since 2003).
Do not confuse with María Isabel Allende Bussi (b. 1945), daughter of former Chilean president Salvador Allende; cousin of the novelist.
Members
Discussions
November 2018: Isabel Allende in Monthly Author Reads (October 2021)
Group Read, October 2016: Of Love and Shadows in 1001 Books to read before you die (October 2016)
Monthly Author Read for September in Monthly Author Reads (September 2011)
Reviews
Toccante.
E intendo letteralmente perchè anche stavolta, come ogni volta, Isabel Allende mi ha toccata dentro con quel suo garbo inconfondibile.
una penna che ci presenta (sempre, da sempre e quanto vorrei che fosse per sempre) personaggi vivi e in questo caso una storia che è potente perchè sa di vero
(grande ammirazione per Elena Liverani)
"Non siamo scomparse. Il vento conosce il mio nome e anche il tuo."
E intendo letteralmente perchè anche stavolta, come ogni volta, Isabel Allende mi ha toccata dentro con quel suo garbo inconfondibile.
una penna che ci presenta (sempre, da sempre e quanto vorrei che fosse per sempre) personaggi vivi e in questo caso una storia che è potente perchè sa di vero
(grande ammirazione per Elena Liverani)
"Non siamo scomparse. Il vento conosce il mio nome e anche il tuo."
Lovers at the Museum - Allende
4 stars
An early morning cleaner at the Bilbao Guggenheim museum sees what she initially thinks is an art installation of a naked man and a woman in a torn and dirty bridal gown. When the ‘installation’ wakes up as she mops around it, the police are called to arrest the intruders.
But, how did they manage to be in the museum all night? How is it that they are not seen on any of the security cameras? If the girl is a bride, how is it that the young man is not her groom? Exactly what crime have they committed?
Poor Inspector Larramendi. How does a serious police inspector write a report for a crime of passion?
This was a perfect short story. I loved the humor and the magical mystery of it. I’m familiar with Gehry’s design of the Disney Hall in Los Angeles. This story had me searching for pictures of the Bilbao museum. I can easily believe it as a setting for the weird and wonderful. Allende gave it just the right touch of magical realism with this story.… (more)
4 stars
An early morning cleaner at the Bilbao Guggenheim museum sees what she initially thinks is an art installation of a naked man and a woman in a torn and dirty bridal gown. When the ‘installation’ wakes up as she mops around it, the police are called to arrest the intruders.
But, how did they manage to be in the museum all night? How is it that they are not seen on any of the security cameras? If the girl is a bride, how is it that the young man is not her groom? Exactly what crime have they committed?
Poor Inspector Larramendi. How does a serious police inspector write a report for a crime of passion?
This was a perfect short story. I loved the humor and the magical mystery of it. I’m familiar with Gehry’s design of the Disney Hall in Los Angeles. This story had me searching for pictures of the Bilbao museum. I can easily believe it as a setting for the weird and wonderful. Allende gave it just the right touch of magical realism with this story.… (more)
Lists
Female Author (4)
2024 Reads (1)
Which house? (1)
Nineties (1)
Read in 2014 (1)
al.vick-series (1)
Allie's Wishlist (1)
Favourite Books (1)
Magic Realism (8)
First Novels (1)
Read These Too (1)
Parallel Novels (1)
GeoCAT 2016 (1)
100 New Classics (1)
AP Lit (1)
Elegant Prose (1)
World Books (2)
My TBR (2)
1990s (2)
Florida (2)
A Novel Cure (2)
Latin America (3)
Reading Globally (3)
Unread books (4)
Five star books (1)
Junky Paperbacks (1)
Ghosts (1)
Latin America (1)
Swashbucklers (1)
Overdue Podcast (1)
1980s (1)
Carole's List (1)
Awards
You May Also Like
Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 118
- Also by
- 44
- Members
- 74,201
- Popularity
- #171
- Rating
- 3.8
- Reviews
- 1,835
- ISBNs
- 2,316
- Languages
- 38
- Favorited
- 315
Golpe cileno, dittatura di Pinochet
(isabelle Allende è sempre una grande scrittrice ma ha perso la poesia)