A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende

Not my usual pick or read. I got into this book at my pen-pal's recco, and glad that I picked it up. Its been a while that I had regular correspondence with my pen friend, but on one of the reconnecting mails, this recco showed up as one of her recent reads. 

It charts its course from Spain before world war, but during its own civil war, the impact of one family, refugees out of Spain, settling into Chile, building their lives there, and then facing Chile's own dicator crisis. Although it is a novel, it draws from real life and facts and one of the historical characters is Pablo Neruda. Through the life story of Dalmau family, it gives a close account of how life, world and reality were affected by the civil war in Spain (perhaps now I can read Orwell's essay on Spain and find my bearings better), and then just how refuge to another country works, how the people rebuild their lives, and then like any other life, the ups and downs, joys and sorrows, a life well lived even though lived through tumultous times and places. 

A Long Petal of the Sea, is another name for Chile, drawn from one of Neruda's poems. 

Interesting way to approach history. It is much more contextual now to read history of both Chile and Spain during those times which the book depicts, and make sense of it, then to read it without any reference point. That is one of the upshots of reading from different times and places, one has a character reference living during those times, and one sees the world, and the history with their context.

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Another thought - was about those professions of teaching and doctors. Not often in my life have I wondered about alternate paths. Once before while reading Che Guevara's motorcycle diaries and his youthful energy, and then again in this book, looking at Victor Dalmau, is the only time I have thought about life as a doctor. These books from South America!

Doctors and teachers - and all the related professions supporting them. These seem to have no need to retire but perhaps get better with experience. There must be other such professions as well...

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Keen to look up more from Allende by and by. She has been writing for the last 40-45 years. I guess I enjoyed the historical context fiction - will look up more such books from her. The other such books I read this year were The Dictionary of Lost Words and Bookbinder from Jericho. Both new books but set a century ago in a different world, both drawing from some reality and hence providing an interesting vantage point for world and local history of that period.