The House of the Spirits
Reddit take
Not enough linked mention summaries yet; the source excerpts below are the evidence.
Pros
- For me it's a great choice for a feminist book club because it focuses on women's lives over several generations. We see things change, and the issues they're struggling with, and how they make their lives within the limits of their soci...
- This was a reread for me because I loved this book when I read it back in college, and happily I still love this book! I really enjoyed it as a family saga and as character-focused historical fiction (I'd mostly forgotten the magical ele...
- Once the book started covering more of the events of Salvador Allende's rise to power, the 1973 Chilean coup d'état, and Pinochet dictatorship, and how that affects the characters, that's when it started working much, much better for me.
- *The House of the Spirits*, from Chile
- But it was a fascinating, beautifully written book, with tons of nuance and depth that required some thought to really unpack. Super glad I read this, and the discussion was excellent!
Cons
- I feel the same way with it not really being an enjoyable experience but still feeling worth reading. I wasn't as bothered by the misogyny and SA content, but I never really felt particularly invested in any of the characters or the fami...
- Parent context: What are your overall thoughts on this book? Reply: I had a mixed experience with this book, but ultimately I'm very glad I read it. I struggled significantly with the first half. I had a lot of trouble locking in, and wh...
- I had a mixed experience with this book, but ultimately I'm very glad I read it. I struggled significantly with the first half. I had a lot of trouble locking in, and while I liked the prose, there were a lot of moments that landed reall...
Sentiment
7 positive (70%) · 3 mixed (30%) · 0 negative (0%)
Trust + time weighted score: +75% · raw score 70%
What redditors said (10 of 10)
For me it's a great choice for a feminist book club because it focuses on women's lives over several generations. We see things change, and the issues they're struggling with, and how they make their lives within the limits of their society.
This was a reread for me because I loved this book when I read it back in college, and happily I still love this book! I really enjoyed it as a family saga and as character-focused historical fiction (I'd mostly forgotten the magical elements, but they were fun too). Allende's style really works for me
Once the book started covering more of the events of Salvador Allende's rise to power, the 1973 Chilean coup d'état, and Pinochet dictatorship, and how that affects the characters, that's when it started working much, much better for me.
I feel the same way with it not really being an enjoyable experience but still feeling worth reading. I wasn't as bothered by the misogyny and SA content, but I never really felt particularly invested in any of the characters or the family drama/tangent plotlines. I still ended up feeling like some of the side characters felt pretty exaggerated in a way that felt grating to me
*The House of the Spirits*, from Chile
But it was a fascinating, beautifully written book, with tons of nuance and depth that required some thought to really unpack. Super glad I read this, and the discussion was excellent!
The way the book was structured as a family epic, but also a family memoir, but also a magical realist novel, but also the story of a country and of a revolution, worked really for me. This book is hard to categorize, in a good way.
Parent context: What are your overall thoughts on this book? Reply: I had a mixed experience with this book, but ultimately I'm very glad I read it. I struggled significantly with the first half. I had a lot of trouble locking in, and while I liked the prose, there were a lot of moments that landed really poorly for me. In particular I had a hard time with the (content warning: SA) multiple rape scenes and the general misogyny.
I had a mixed experience with this book, but ultimately I'm very glad I read it. I struggled significantly with the first half. I had a lot of trouble locking in, and while I liked the prose, there were a lot of moments that landed really poorly for me. In particular I had a hard time with the (content warning: SA) multiple rape scenes and the general misogyny.
The House of the Spirits is an enthralling saga that spans decades and lives, twining the personal and the political into an epic novel of love, magic, and fate.
Compare
The House of the Spirits vs East of EdenThe House of the Spirits vs The Poisonwood BibleThe House of the Spirits vs Lonesome Dove
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