Civil War in El Salvador

One Day of Life is told by the matriarch of a peasant family in El Salvador. Originally published in 1980 at the start of the civil war in El Salvador, it is an account of the persecution of one family by government-backed soldiers. Through flashbacks we learn that the son of the matriarch has already disappeared due to his "Communist sympathies."

Lupe, the matriarch, begins her day like any other. Her 14 year old granddaughter, Adolfina, goes out with her younger siblings to get tortillas in the village. By noon a group of soldiers arrive at the family home. They want to take Adolfina to see if she can identify a "wounded man." Since we know that the wounded man was "wounded" by these soldiers it is clear that their intentions are not good. Lupe refuses to let Adolfina go and eventually the soldiers bring the man, near death, to be identified. Only Lupe recognizes him, with grave consequences.

The tension of this story builds gradually throughout the day and the conclusion is unpredictable. As it is describing the tactics Salvadorean soldiers used to intimidate and torture their fellow peasants, all in the name of preventing communist tendencies, it is a story of the viciousness of humanity.

The author of this story, Manlio Arugeta, is better known as a poet in the Spanish-speaking world. He was exiled from El Salvador for nearly two decades, due to his political views. The Salvadorean Civil War lasted from 1980 until 1992. Much credit for the duration is attributable to the generous funding of U.S. administrations, especially Bush I. The UNHCR summarizes the Bush policy in El Salvador succinctly.

Multigenerational dramas

Daughter of Fortune, by Isabel Allende is an interesting book, but like all books about multiple generations of characters it is lengthy. Unfortunately, it is also part of a trilogy, with Portrait in Sepia, and The House of the Spirits being the missing books. So, I cannot give a complete review of the entire plotline. However, I can safely classify the book as bildungsroman/romance light.

This novel is a story about Eliza Sommers, who adopted by a British family living in Chile, grows up sheltered in a multicultural household. Historical detail is vividly provided and the cultural attitudes of the British are painted over the Chilean background. Eliza grows up and falls in love with a young Chilean man. The novel moves from romance to adventure as Eliza follows her love to the gold rush in California. On the ship she stows away with the help of a Chinese doctor (to whom Allende has already introduced the reader, through extended flashbacks and descriptions of mainland China and Hong Kong) and with his help searches California for her love. Disguising herself as a boy she searches until her love has become more of a talisman than a memory. Finally, she returns to San Francisco and assists the doctor with his work. The book ends with the long-delayed acknowledgement of love between the doctor and Eliza.

Though this is a good story, the fact that there is no resolution after 399 pages and additional books that continue the story is discouraging. One has to be really interested in the characters to continue. If your not interested in multigenerational stories this is not the book for you.