Chilean author and journalist Isabel Allende is the most widely read writer in the Spanish language. Her books have been translated into over 40 languages and sold more than 74 million copies.
Allende’s books are known for their themes of female empowerment, romantic drama and struggle, and the magical realism common in Latin American literature, which all make for a very engaging and thought-provoking read.
Best Isabel Allende Books to Read Next
Here are some of the best Isabel Allende books to add to your TBR (to be read) pile:
1. The House of the Spirits
This first novel that skyrocketed Isabel Allende to international fame tells the story of the Trueba family over three generations. Esteban, the patriarch, is a proud and volatile man pursuing political power. His wife Clara, with her mystical spiritual connections, tempers his ambition, especially when their daughter Blanca pursues a forbidden love affair and presents them with a granddaughter.
2. A Long Petal of the Sea
This epic novel will take you through decades and continents, following the pregnant young widow Roser and her brother-in-law army doctor Victor Dalmau as they flee the Spanish Civil War and search for a new home. The New York Times Book Review calls this “one of the most richly imagined portrayals of the Spanish Civil War.”
3. The Soul of a Woman
In this memoir, Isabel Allende shares how from a young age, she caught her first glimpses of feminism from her mother: after being abandoned by Isabel’s father, her mother provided for three small children. When Isabel came of age during the 1960s, she joined forces with other female journalists to speak up for women’s rights.
4. Island Beneath the Sea
In this novel, Allende tells the story of Zarité, a mulatta woman who is bought as a slave by a Frenchman who runs a sugar plantation. Eventually, as her mistress falls into madness, her master makes her his concubine. How will she take charge of her own destiny?
5. The Sum of Our Days
In this memoir, Allende reflects on painful experiences, including her daughter Paula’s tragic death. She explores themes like marriage, love, motherhood, religion, spirituality, memory, addiction, and infidelity, telling the stories of the many unique members of her tribe.
6. The Japanese Lover
This epic novel follows the story of Alma Belasco, whose parents send her away from Poland during the Nazi occupation. In the safety of her aunt and uncle’s house in San Francisco, she meets Ichimei Fukuda, the son of the Japanese gardener working for the family. But their love affair is cruelly torn apart when, following the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the US government throws all Japanese Americans into internment camps.
7. Eva Luna
Eva Luna is a poor orphan girl who has one treasure: the ability to imagine and weave tales that entrance other people. She peddles these stories to people who are good to her, sharing a diverse cast of characters she has met in her own life.
8. Daughter of Fortune
Eliza Sommers is a girl orphaned at birth and raised by a Victorian spinster named Mary Rose and her brother Jeremy. She falls in love with the clerk Joaquín, who works for Jeremy, just as gold is found in the north California hills. Eliza follows Joaquín to San Francisco in the midst of all the greedy men desperate for wealth.
9. In the Midst of Winter
The story starts when Richard Bowmaster, a 60-something university professor accidentally hits undocumented immigrant Evelyn’s car during the biggest snowstorm in Brooklyn’s history. Evelyn then shows up at his house asking for help, leading their lives to intertwine in ways they never expected.
10. Of Love and Shadows
Irene Beltrán is a magazine journalist who keeps challenging her country’s oppressive regime. She forms a passionate connection with her partner, photographer Francisco Leal, as they fight to uncover a hideous crime and reveal the truth in a nation riddled with violence and terror.
11. My Invented Country: A Nostalgic Journey Through Chile
This is a very personal memoir about Allende’s homeland and exile, giving us a magnificent look at the Chilean nation and people. Take a glimpse at the violent history surrounding its politics and religion, alongside the magic and myth of her homeland.
Reading Isabel Allende Books
Few works in modern times contain the richness that Isabel Allende’s writings offer. If you want to learn the intricacies of Latin America, through its history and politics, you can experience these and more in one of Allende’s books.
If you want a nonfiction read, she also has several memoirs you can choose from to see how human beings can adapt and grow through challenges in life.
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Yen Cabag is the Blog Writer of TCK Publishing. She is also a homeschooling mom, family coach, and speaker for the Charlotte Mason method, an educational philosophy that places great emphasis on classic literature and the masterpieces in art and music. She has also written several books, both fiction and nonfiction. Her passion is to see the next generation of children become lovers of reading and learning in the midst of short attention spans.
