Violetta

 

Violetta was born in 1920 during the Spanish Flu pandemic and in 2020 sets out to write an account of the family story for her grandson. The book is set in an un-named country which is probably Uruguay. Violetta's family was well off but her father concentrated on the next deal instead of ensuring that the family finances were safe. Consequently the family fortune was lost during the 1930s depression and they had to relocate to an isolated part of the country to start a new life.

The novel, Violetta, by Isabel Allende is the story of a family struggling to survive through difficult political times including dictatorships and political interference from other countries. It is also the story of women gaining control of their lives instead of being constantly under the power and the will of the men in their lives. Violetta has a series of relationships, some of which she recounts. Violetta is determined to earn and keep her own money in order to survive. As she ages Violetta reaccesses what is truely important in her life.

This is a compasionate story of a woman's struggle to survive, despite the odds; the power and importance of family and the struggle of the population of a country trying to determine a better life.