Eva Luna is beautifully written and a fantastical story that takes you on the adventures of a young woman wandering her world. When researching this blog post, I found a TED Talk by Isabel Allende that is replete with equal parts humor and sorrow. It quickly becomes clear that this woman has seen both in her own life. She tells tales of women around the world, our "sisters," who have no control over their lives or bodies. You can hear the depth of compassion in her voice and recognize that she has seen first hand this abuse of power - the abuse that was prominent during the dictatorship.
What to do in the face of such sorrow? She focuses on passion. She says that, "heart is what drives us and determines our fate." She begs us to imagine what kind of world we want and to make it so. Instead of looking to make the world better, how can we make the world "good," so that the "quality of life is enriched for everybody."
Isabel Allende's TED talk is wonderful and highly recommended to see a passion born and bred in Chile.