Paula

My mother gave me a copy of Paula by Isabel Allende to read on my recent holiday to Europe. I was reluctant to read it as I had been to a talk by the author a few years ago when, among other things. she told us about the writing of Paula. It sounded much too sad a book to be reading. However, as I was given it, I felt compelled to read it and I did like it very much. It is a sad story of the slow dying of Paula following being in a coma, the consequences of porphyria. The book was a memoir dedicated to Paula (written after her death) telling her about Isabel's life and those of her other relatives and the military coup in Chile. It is a heart-wrending story for any mother to read, and it is told well so that the reader becomes quite fond of Isabel's family. The insight into the terrible coup was interesting to learn to more about as well. This is a story I'm now glad to have read. 4/5