Customer Reviews

El Plan Infinito (Spanish Edition)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I chose to read this book quite by accident. Wanting to keep up with spanish as a second language, I decided to read on a regular basis. At the neighborhood bookstore, "El Plan Infinito" was the only spanish book on the shelf. I was greatly rewarded by having so few options.

The creation, development, and metamorphasis of the characters is astonishing. Isabel Allende is truly gifted in making characters come alive. That she can create credible characters that are so far afield of her own experience is an obvious indication of her talents as a writer. Age, ethnicity, culture, race, and gender offer no barrier to her ability to develope a character that the reader can see, understand, and most importantly, believe. Sra. Allende has an obvious gift for weaving the experiences and motivations of several complex characters into a single, well-woven cloth.

The tragedy of this book is that it comes to an end. The characters cease to be simply characters drawn from another's imagination; instead, they became real people who can be remembered and missed. As real people their lives would continue. But of course, a book must end, and we must simply savor the experience.

"El Plan Infinito" is well-written and entertaining. Its characters speak to something that resides in all of us. Perhaps this is the key to the popularity of Sra. Allende's books. Vicariously, through her characters, we can give vent to the unconventional urges that reside deep within our psyche.

The next book I read will be written by Isabel Allende.

Gregory Reeves grows up in a most unusual family--his father an itinerant New Age guru, his mother withdrawn and distant. When the father, Charles, falls ill, the family takes up residence in a Mexican neighborhood in Los Angeles, and the family's nomadic idyll comes to an end. Gregory faces many struggles, trying to survive in a new culture where he is never fully accepted.

The book follows Gregory and the many people whose lives become entwined with his, through high school, the Viet Nam war, social change, college and law school, disastrous marriage, a second disastrous marriage, disturbed children, and a law office that is about to go bankrupt. The book is not tightly plotted, it simply flows and develops, very much like real life. And what a cast of characters--every one of them fascinating and unforgettable.

What makes Allende's writing so remarkable is that every one of the characters--and at times there are almost too many--struggles toward the light, toward redemption, in his or her own way. And so, although these characters have terrible flaws and failings, you come to love them and wish them well. And by the end of the book, most of them--well, I won't spoil it for you. Author Isabel Allende has a unique way of creating a sense of intimate communion with her readers, so that you feel you have come to know her as well. I loved this book and I recommend it highly. Reviewed by Louis N. Gruber.

He leido todos los libros de Isabel, y este es mi segundo favorito... (1ro esta la Casa de los Espiritus!)... la manera en que la Allende nos envuelve en el caracter de cada uno de los personajes es increible.. El libro esta preciosamente narrado y el perfil de los personajes tan bien definido y claro que parece que los conocieramos a cada uno... Me parecio excelente..!

Este es un libro que más he disfrutado en mi vida, pues tiene el personaje principal es muy real, con todo y la fantasía que le rodea, un personaje inolvidable dueño de una historia igualmente inolvidable.

Este libro de Isabel, es muy personal, como todos los suyos, y ademas muestra una maestria para la narracion, de manera que nos hace sumergirnos en el, como si estuvieramos presentes y conocieramos realmente a los personajes. yo siento que es el mejor de ella

I have read several Latin American authors with avid interest. So often they seem to have something new to say, or, something to say in a new and interesting way. This book seems to have neither of those virtues: the Spanish is wordy and descriptive, but lacks a certain poetry I have got used to by other authors; and the themes do not strike me as new, or treated in a novel way. The storyline was also very disjoint! Perhaps the authoress was trying to capture a sense of the protagonist's own confusion, living through a troubled childhood, broken relationships and war. Whatever the intention, it made this book incredibly difficult to read, despite how good the storyline when all the broken lines were connected. So I guess overall (assuming Allende's intention was to present a broken-up kind of story) it is not that bad, though I had expected something much better and enjoyable to read.

Esto no es un libro, yo mas bien lo llamaria una experiencia. Nunca fui muy fanatico de Isabel pero este libro me convencio de su maravillosa pluma y sin dejar de mencionar esa bella narrativa que no deja que pares de leer.

Mi opinión es que Isabel Allende es una destacada autora de novela histórica hispanoamericana, y ello lo hace excelente. Cuando incursiona en autobiografías, biografías, novela juvenil, etc. pierde su encanto, se humaniza. "El Plan Infinito" no es nada especial, describe ambientes que no le son propios y por ello falla. Es entretenido y nada más, pero uno de Isabel Allende espera lo siempre destacado y fuera de parámetro, y este no es el caso.

Very poor book. Isabel Allende seems to have lost her way with this one. For some reason it doesn't flow, it is a mish mash of ideas and stories and strayed too far from what she is very good at.

Definitely not one of her good ones.

Great story from the 1960's Vietnam war and Los angeles in the 60's, a white boy in the heart of Los Angeles mexican district
very cool, you won't stop reading this one.