Eva Luna - Isabel Allende (Book Club)

Eva Luna is name of the protagonist in this book, and her story actually begins with her mother, Consuelo, as a young girl. Consuelo's story is important because it leads us to the unique circumstances of Eva Luna's conception, how she received her name, and the strong link she had with her mother.

Tragedy strikes and Eva goes through life working as a servant in different households, paying her wages to the madrina in whose care she has been left. Her hardships are offset by her talent for telling stories, and she shares them with anyone who will listen. Her patrona goes a bit crazy and Eva runs away, and in the ensuing years her personal relationships are with those as unique as she is: a Turkish shopkeeper, a young revolutionary, a madame, a transsexual, and a young reporter and filmmaker named Rolf Carle.

Parts of the book also chronicle Rolf Carle's life as a young boy with an overbearing father, growing up in a stifling village, the boundaries of which Rolf longs to escape. He does get out, and makes a career as a controversial filmmaker, who gets deeply involved in the work of revolutionists, which leads him to Eva.

I couldn't really tell where this book was going at first, and had a difficult time staying interested. I even though of ditching it and reading something else (which I rarely do), but it was the first mention of Rolf Carle and his family that got me hooked. I do have to say that the book does weave a tale of extraordinary and sometimes unbelievable circumstances; particularly the presence of multiple sexual experiences that I wasn't sure were integral to the story itself. Not graphic descriptions by any means, but a few seemed out of place and a little farfetched...particularly Eva's encounter before leaving the village of Agua Santa.

This is one of our book club selections, but unfortunately I can't make the upcoming meeting. I will be interested to hear what other members thought of the book. Overall I believe the book was worth the read, and this strange tale may be a stroke of brilliance to some, but it wasn't really my style. The language was beautiful, but I just couldn't get into the story.