Customer Reviews

La Suma de los Dias (Spanish Edition)

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book book by Isabel Allende can be described as a tribute to her daughter, her own life, her family and fans of her literature. I can only imagine the time and dedication that Isabel sacrificed to write such a personal recompilation of her life happenings which ultimately involved the most important people around her which includes family and friends.

Isabel journeys down memory lane to tell her daughter, Paula all that has happened since her departure from life. Isabel used her natural talent to write combined with her literary strengths which has always been her exquisite vocabulary and self-expression in this very personal expose in the form of a memoire/ autobiography. This is one of the few books that I have read in Isabel's collection and was attracted to it due to the personal nature of the book. It is so beautifully written, no details are left untouched, what a way to reconcile with life's happenings both good and bad. This is one of the best books I have read this year and definitely one of best releases of 2007. Le felicito a Isabel Allende por un libro que ha sido escrito con esmero, honestidad y exquisitez.

Isabel Allende writes as if every reader is a PhD with a conscience. The elegance of her language simply allows you to walk unhindered through the days and years of her stories--to live the era, to feel each day as it dawns. Reading them in Spanish--the language of their creation--is best, but Allende's translations are only a heartbeat away from the real thing, filled with her intimate conversations flung toward the spirit of her late daughter, Paula; the quotidian visits back and forth of the people who are always welcome in the family home in California.
By all means, buy this book if you can; if not, borrow or steal it. You'll be glad you did. ¡Vale la pena!

.....SIEMPRE HE SIDO UNS FIEL LECTORA DE LOS LIBROS DE ISABEL ALLENDE....EXCELENTE ESCRITORA....Y EL LIBRO....LA SUMA DE LOS DIAS....HASTA LO QUE HE LEIDO HASTA EL MOMENTO NO ME HA DESILUSIONADO....TREMENDA LECTURA ....LO RECOMIENDO MUY FAVORABLEMENTE........

If you dreamt about meeting Isabel, look no further! Her book is warm and realistic. There is no need to try to imagine how she is in real life because the book allows you to meet her in the most profound way. With her extraordinary writing Isabel becomes your best friend, mother, daughter, son, or as she calls it "a member of her tribe". I am looking forward to her next book and wonder, what could be better than, La Suma de los Dias!

¿Quién dijo que para que un libro sea excelente por fuerza tiene que ser complejo?

En definitiva este ha sido uno de los libros cuya lectura me ha resultado tan interesante como grata. No es una ficción, pero llamarlo simples memorias no le haría justicia a la obra, que por la forma en como está narrada, se asemeja más a cuentos muy digeribles. Para el óptimo aprovechamiento de este libro, sugiero no leerlo sino hasta primero haber leído "Paula", cuyo matiz de duelo contrasta con el matiz de catarsis y ligereza de "La suma de los días" al ser el complemento ideal que cierra el círculo.

I loved it, she is funny and pasionate and as a latinamerican living in the United States and married to an American, I can relate to some of her experiences.

I had read all the books written by Isabel Allende is my favorite author. This book is wonderful. You will wonder be part of her "tribu" !
I can't wait for the next one!
Thank you Isabel

I have read every single book written by Isabel Allende who is one of my favorite authors. This new book is wonderful, as usual.

In La suma de Los Días (The sum of Days) - Hardcover, Isabel Allende admits: "I had called my muse without results. Even the most horrendous muse had abandoned me." (p. 143). Later she tells us that she: remembered her career as a newspaperwoman: if she receives a subject and enough time to do research, she can write just about anything." (Page 144).

This is the birth of "La suma de los Días," where Ms. Allende narrates her recent history, particularly the one that deals with her family in California, full of people and literary friends. Unfortunately for the reader, this is a terrible discourse of an author singing her praises, even insulting other writers--when her husband Willie decides to write a novel her comment is: "Anyone could say that writing a novel is like plating geraniums. I spend ten hours a day stuck on my chair trying to find the right phrase to be able to tell a more effective story. I suffer with my plot, I get involved with the characters, I do research, edit over and over and then I have to travel half the world promoting my books like a frustrated salesperson." (P. 281).

Supposedly a sequel to Paula, Her technique is terrible, she changes from the second person to the third at will, confusing the reader. We don't know whhen she's talking to Paula or narrating her story. She also goes back and forth in time and several times she starts a story and tells you she'll finish it later.

It is sad to see the author of "The House of Spirits--La casa de los espíritus" and "Paula" perform so poorly. She has lost all her ability to narrate and her prose has lost any magical realism it ever had.

This is considered Isabel Allende's second Memoir book and I believe a difficult one to follow if you are not familiar with her other books and Memoirs; especially Paula (her first memoir). In that first memoir she narrates her life for her daughter and the process helps her to let go and move forward after tragedy.

In the second book Allende narrates the stories as a simple conversation with her. It can be considered with retrospect to her life served with a cup of tea. It is an easy reading that allows you to see the recent events in her life thru her life. You become one with her steps, but need to keep an open mind to understand the decision of the rest of her family and its consequences.

It is difficult to believe the character representations in the book. They feel more like fictitious characters than members of her family. I guess we can all relate to having a different family, but in her case they are extreme (in the good sense of the word). They live life to the extreme and express their passion in every breath.

As always, Isabel Allende presents us with everyday events in a magnificent way. Only she can turn a normal day with her grandkids into a fantastic event. Her attention to detail and her in depth description turns her life into a book of fantasy full of love and sorrow. At points you forget The Sum of Our Days is a non-fiction because of her incredible ability as a novelist. In reality her life is more or less a novel.