Book Review

"Portrait in Sepia"
Isabel Allende

By Mary Matus

   Encompassing more than 50 years, A Portrait in Sepia by Isabel Allende is the story of Aurora del Valle's quest to discover her roots. Like her storyteller character Eva Luna (Eva Luna, Stories of Eva Luna), Allende mesmerizes readers with her vivid descriptions of the land,culture and history of her homeland, Chile.

    Chile in the late 19th century is at war with Bolivia and Peru. Allende makes the war more personal for readers by placing one of the characters in the war. She describes some of the bloody battle scenes with a blunt honesty and does not try to make her homeland's wars sound romantic. In addition to the war, Allende also portrays the political turmoil in the country. Primarily a Catholic country, most of Chile is comprised of conservatives who have very old fashioned ideas about the place of women in society. However, several of the main characters are liberals trying to modernize the country. Allende even includes one socialist character, giving the reader an idea of the rise of socialism at the time. The violent history of both the war and the political turmoil is so fascinating that the reader may not realize they are getting a history lesson.

Another setting Allende takes advantage of is Chinatown in San Francisco. Allende portrays both the rich culture of the Chinese Americans and how the Chinese Americans are treated by the rest of the city. She is also not afraid to show the ugly side of the Chinese American culture, including the teenage prostitution common in that period.

Allende's novel includes many colorful characters that draw readers into the story. Among the most prominent and the most colorful is Paulina del Valle, Aurora's paternal grandmother who raises her from the age of five. Although not admirable in some aspects, Paulina is afraid to say what she wants or do what she wants, despite what people say about her.

Allende takes an unusual approach in not letting the narrator be the prominent figure until halfway through the book. Instead, Allende spends the first half of the book telling the story of Aurora's relatives, in particular Paulina del Valle. The contrast between Paulina and Aurora is so great sometimes that it is almost comical. Flamboyant Paulina's grandchild is shy, modest and naive. Like Paulina, Aurora is often not afraid of what others will think. Even Paulina tells Aurora she should just get married and have children. Aurora, though, is determined to pursue her love of photography. Allende's passages on photography and Aurora's love of it are very moving and provide insight into Aurora's character.

Allende uses such detail in describing the people and land in A Portrait in Sepia that readers may find themselves swept away to 19th century Chile. Allende once again proves that, like Eva Luna, she has almost a magical ability to create a compelling story.