Daughter of Fortune
An orphan raised in Valparaiso, Chile, by a Victorian spinster and her rigid brother, vivacious young Eliza Sommers follows her lover to California during the Gold Rush of 1849. Entering a rough-and-tumble world of new arrivals driven mad by gold fever, Eliza moves in a society of single men and...
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An orphan raised in Valparaiso, Chile, by a Victorian spinster and her rigid brother, vivacious young Eliza Sommers follows her lover to California during the Gold Rush of 1849. Entering a rough-and-tumble world of new arrivals driven mad by gold fever, Eliza moves in a society of single men and prostitutes with the help of her good friend and savior, the Chinese doctor Tao Chi'en. California opens the door to a new life of freedom and independence to the young Chilean, and her search for her elusive lover gradually turns into another kind of journey. By the time she finally hears news of him, Eliza must decide who her true love really is.
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Format: paperback
ISBN:
9780061565335 (0061565334)
ASIN: 61565334
Publish date: June 10th 2008
Publisher: Harper Perennial Modern Classics
Pages no: 432
Edition language: English
Category:
Novels,
Literature,
European Literature,
Cultural,
Book Club,
Adult Fiction,
Historical Fiction,
Romance,
Adult,
Magical Realism,
Spanish Literature,
Latin American
By coincidence, this was one of several works I've read in the past year set (or set partially) in the California gold rush of 1849. I'd say this is by the far the most successful. The others, by the way, are The Sisters Brothers, and the novelized version of Lola Montez' life. The title character...
I learned more about Chile, Chinese culture and the California gold rush than I have having read history books in school. Allende was not only informative but it was all detailed and beautifully told. I love how richly developed her characters are but I also found this a bit of a flaw as it took an ...
Usually I run from Oprah's book picks for many reasons, but because she is a well known Latina author, I wanted to read Allende and judge for myself.Her novel did not disappoint. For me, the time period and limited freedom for women was wonderfully demonstrated through Eliza. Women at that time wer...
A book-with-a-passport offering from Hayes - thankee:O)Everyone is born with some special talent, and Eliza Sommers discovered early on that she had two: a good sense of smell and a good memory.Didn't think for one minute that this would reach 3* goodness but it did... just!
The story begins in Valparaiso, Chile and is focused around Eliza Sommers. An infant Eliza was abandoned on the doorstep of Rose and Jeremy Sommers (brother and sister), and Rose raised Eliza as the daughter. One day, Englishman Jacob Todd comes to Chile, supposedly as a missionary out to convert th...
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