Who Is Isabel Allende?

A Latin American writer who has settled in California.

She is part of the movement of writers in the Magical Realism genre.  Her writing is is more vivid and emotive, than fantastical.

She was born in 1942, and raised in various parts of South America and Lebanon.  From 1967-1974 she worked as a journalist in Chile.  Early on she was told she should aim towards writing fiction rather than journalism, by no less than the eminent Chilean poet, Pablo Neruda.

She is niece of the former Chilean president, Salvador Allende. Soon after he was deposed in a coup headed by General Pinochet, Allende and her family fled to exile in Venezuela.  In 1984 she moved to California.

Her most famous work is The House of Spirits, written in 1982, partly in memory of her grandfather.  The House of Spirits was made into a movie in 1993, starring an A-list of Hollywood and British actors.

Allende was a flag-bearer at the 2006 Olympics.

Another of best known books is Paula.  It's an extended autobiographical letter to her daughter Paula, written when the later was lying in a fatal coma.

Isabel Allende was born on August 2, 1942 in Lima, Peru South America. In 1945, her parents separated and she moved to Chile with her mother.

Isabel Allende is a Chilean novelist and television host. Her works include: The House of the Spirits(1982), Eva Luna (1987), The Infinite Plan (1991), Daughter of Fortune (1999), and, Forest of the Pygmies (2005).

Isabel Allende's books are known for their vivid storytelling. Isabel Allende's main trademark is the use of emotive words and phrases and the style of Magical realism. She is a superior writer.

She was  married to Miguel Frias in 1962.  Miguel and Isabel have lived and worked in the United States since 1988.