In 1741, during the War of Jenkins’ Ear, HMS Wager, a British man-of-war, was part of a squadron sent to capture a treasure-laden Spanish galleon. Separated from the fleet while rounding Cape Horn, the Wager wrecked and left its crew stranded on a desolate island off the coast of Patagonia. Facing starvation and harsh conditions, the crew splintered into rival factions. In a daring escape, 80 men sailed nearly 3,000 miles to Brazil. Six months later, another group of three survivors landed in Chile, in even worse condition. These men accused the Brazilian survivors of mutiny. The ensuing court martial revealed a harrowing tale of warring factions, murder, and cannibalism […]
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Mixed Feelings About Violeta
Violeta by Isabel Allende, a nominee for the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Historical Fiction in 2022, is a bit of a mixed bag for me. It’s the life story of Violeta del Valle, a woman whose 100 years span the most tumultuous events of the twentieth century, told through letters to her grandson. This setup promises a lot—emotional depth, historical insights, and the personal touch that comes with such a narrative form. And while Allende is no slouch in the storytelling department, this journey felt uneven. Starting off in the stormy year of 1920, during the Spanish flu pandemic, Violeta’s life is undeniably epic. I could almost see the […]
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