Chilean author Isabel Allende to visit Texas State

By Maria R. Gonzalez
University News Service
March 30, 2007

Renowned Chilean author Isabel Allende will visit Texas State University-San Marcos on April 11, an event that highlights the 2006-2007 Common Experience theme of protest and dissent.

Allende will read excerpts from her acclaimed novels and short stories on the mall outside the university’s LBJ Student Center beginning at 7 p.m.

Pam Wuestenberg said Allende’s presence at Texas State complements university events such as the Hispanic Heritage and Latina presence on campus celebrations and the Common Experience theme of protest and dissent.

“Allende’s writings have a strong female presence, and in her culture, women are usually subjugated by the male presence,” she said. “In a sense it is a type of protest and dissent against Hispanic cultural norms that place women on a secondary status.”

Allende began her career as a journalist in Chile and Venezuela, where she alternated in writing genres varying from children’s short stories to comedy to theatre plays. Her novels have been translated in 27 languages and bestsellers in Latin America, the United States, Europe and Australia. The list includes “The House of Spirits” (1982), “Eva Luna” (1985), “Daughter of Fortune” (1999) and “Zorro” (2005). Allende is also known for her short story collections, including “Stories of Eva Luna” (1989) and “Aphrodite” (1997). Among her publications are several young adult novels including “The City of Beasts” (2002) and “Forest of the Pygmies (2005).

The celebrated Chilean writer has received numerous awards in various countries. She has published articles in newspapers and magazines in the Americas and Europe, where she also partakes in lecture and speech tours.  Allende has also taught literature at the University of Virginia-Charlottesville, at Montclair College in New Jersey and at the University of California-Berkley.

For more information, contact Pam Wuestenberg at  commonexperience@txstate.edu.