Nonetheless, I’m an orderly guy, so I would’ve loved just a bit more to make that part of the book come together. Then again, life is messy and often repeats itself, so this was very realistic in other ways. I generally prefer a deeper structure, perhaps a timeline or chapter description to showcase what part of her life we are about to explore. It’s not purposely unclear, just not as important as what’s happening to her. It’s chronological, but we’re not quite sure of her age or role at the time.

If there was one thing I found a bit disappointing, it was the lack of a formal structure in how we learn about Eva’s life. Going into the book, I had little understanding of the detailed theme. The story chronicles Eva’s life and relationships. But there are some beautiful moments too, it’s not all sad! that is, until they are cruelly killed or die of natural causes. Yet in each, she finds someone to lean on, and develops a life-long relationship with them. She lives in a string of homes, all difficult places. Once we learn about the past, we’re ready for Eva Luna, a storyteller who doesn’t know she is one until much later on, despite what everyone once told her.

Somewhere in South America (Nina and I saw a few options) but ultimately settled on it purposely being generalist in some areas given there were different cultures involved. For now, I’m sharing some of the highlights of my thoughts. We spent the last week reading the book and discussing some of the key points and will continue to do so, I’m sure. We settled on Isabel Allende, and she selected Eva Luna. We both had a connection to it for a few reasons, which prompted her to suggest a buddy read. Earlier this year, my friend Nina and I were discussing internationally written literature, specifically from Latin America.

Eva luna isabel