"Portrait in Sepia is the best book Allende has published in the United States since her first novel of nearly two decades ago, The House of the Spirits.”
—Jonathan Yardley, Washington Post Book World
“Portrait in Sepia tightens the weave of a multigenerational fantasy as complete and inspiring as the real world it parallels ... Allende’s enchanting historical universe keeps expanding and Portrait in Sepia is a new galactic jewel.”
—Chicago Tribune
A richly imagined historical novel about memory and family secrets from the New York Times bestselling author of Island Beneath the Sea, Inés of My Soul, Daughter of Fortune, Zorro, and House of the Spirits.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
In typical Allende fashion, Portrait in Sepia is crammed with love, desire, tragedy, and dark family secrets, all played out against the dramatic backdrop of revolutionary Chile. Our heroine Aurora del Valle's mother is a Chilean-Chinese beauty, while her father is a dissolute scion of the wealthy and powerful del Valle family. At the heart of Aurora's slow, painful re-creation of her childhood towers one of Allende's greatest fictional creations, the heroine's grandmother, Paulina del Valle. An "astute, bewigged Amazon with a gluttonous appetite," Paulina holds both the del Valle family and Allende's novel together as she presides over Aurora's adolescence in a haze of pastries, taffeta, and overweening love.
One of the most interesting aspects of the novel is Allende's decision to turn her heroine into a photographer: "through photography and the written word I try desperately to conquer the transitory nature of my existence, to trap moments before they evanesce, to untangle the confusion of my past." There is little confusion in Allende's elegantly crafted and hugely enjoyable novel. --Jerry Brotton, Amazon.co.uk
Internationally celebrated novelist Isabel Allende has written a magnificent historical novel set at the end of the nineteenth century in Chile -- a marvelous family saga that takes up and continues the story begun in her highly acclaimed Daughter of Fortune.
Recounted in the voice of a young woman in search of her roots, Portrait in Sepia is a novel about memory and family secrets. Aurora del Valle suffers a brutal trauma that shapes her character and erases from her mind all recollection of the first five years of her life. Raised by her ambitious grandmother, the regal and commanding Paulina del Valle, Aurora grows up in a privileged environment, free of the limitations that circumscribe the lives of women at that time, but tormented by horrible nightmares. When she is forced to recognize her betrayal at the hands of the man she loves, and to cope with the resulting solitude, she decides to explore the mystery of her past.
Portrait in Sepia is an extraordinary achievement: richly detailed, epic in scope, intimate in its probing of human character, and thrilling in the way it illuminates the complexity of family ties.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Shipping:
US$ 4.99
Within U.S.A.
Book Description Audio Cassette. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Good. BS4 - 8 very good cassettes that has label and library markings in a good cover/case that has label on the front, spine, and couple on the back, tiny tear on the spine corners, tanning on the edges, and shelf wear. Unabridged. Approx. 12 hours. Read by Blair Brown. Satisfaction Guaranteed. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Ex-Library. Seller Inventory # EC13132BB
Book Description AUDIO CASSETTE. Condition: Very Good. 8 BRAND NEW AUDIO CASSETTES in the shrinkwrap. Sealed and new. Just a bit of shelf wear to the shrinkwrap.Enjoy this NEW audio cassette performance. Seller Inventory # 494676202011729
Book Description AUDIO CASSETTE. Condition: Good. Unabridged 8 AUDIO CASSETTE EDITION. Some shelf wear to the covers. We will test each cassette, prior to shipping for a smooth sound. You will receive a reliable set. Enjoy this AUDIO CASSETTE TAPE performance for your home and library. Audio Book. Seller Inventory # 727170492020792
Book Description Audio Cassette. Condition: Good. 8 AUDIO CASSETTES, tested for your satisfaction for a worthwhile set, withdrawn from the library collection. Some shelf wear and library marking to the case. The cassettes are in individual slots, protected and clear sounding. Enjoy this reliable Audio Cassette performance. Audio Book. Seller Inventory # 630630630131115