Zorro: A Novel (P.S.) by Isabel Allende Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Zorro: A Novel (P.S.)
Book Review: Poor Zorro!
Summary: 1 Stars
The word I'm looking for here is 'horrible'. There are others, such as 'boring', 'plotless', 'politically-correct' and 'ugly', but let's just go with 'horrible'.
Zorro deserves better than this astonishingly bad novel. In the interests of postmodernist sensitivities, Allende takes the ultimate well-bred dashing rogue and turns him into someone we neither care for, like, nor enjoy reading about.
Zorro is not a 'realistic' character and he does not have a 'realistic' story. He never has. He was always unashamedly swashbuckling, unashamedly upper-class and blue-blooded, suave and charming--even in the new movies about Alejandro Murrieta, he's unable to become Zorro unless he has mastered the art of being a courtier--or pretending to be. Making him the surly, lecherous son of an even surlier Indian mother and a wimpish Spanish father, motivated by being in touch with his mystical Indian roots, goes against everything the idea of the swashbuckler stands for. It would be just fine in any other novel, but Zorro is a completely different character altogether.
The book has no action. It has precisely two scenes which try to be classic swashbuckling but fail. The rest is boring decription of tensionless journeys, of years going by. It's ponderous and completely unexciting. It bored me out of my wits and made me want to scrub out the inside of my brain. It made me wonder if Allende has ever read a real swashbuckler in her life, that makes her so very woefully unprepared to write one.
Again, it would be fine in the hands of a better novelist or about another character, but when you read about Zorro, you want to hear about sword-fights, beautiful and spirited women, black horses, adventure! Instead, we get this mess, with repressed, surly, hopeless characters milling around being neither individual, nor memorable, nor exciting, nor a pleasure to be around.
In another book I might accept this. But there comes a time when you tire of Serious Reality and go off to read a good escapist swashbuckling yarn--and this book disappoints so completely and comprehensively that I never see Isabel Allende's name in the bookshop without a shudder. Read Dumas, read Sabatini, read Rider Haggard, read the historical novels of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, but avoid this book!
Book Review: She Did Her Research, But Where's the Zing?
Summary: 2 Stars
This book is very well-researched, and I can't fault the writing. However, it's very dry reading. A certain excitement is missing. Maybe it's because the book was translated from Spanish? I found myself wishing there were illustrations.Book Review: Surprising Fresh and Fun Retelling Of A Classic
Summary: 4 Stars
Having found Allende's most recent works of fiction to be lifeless, I purchased Zorro with more than a little trepidation. But, to my pleasant surprise, Zorro proved that Allende still has good fiction to share with her readers.
Two qualities made this book stand out from her other recent fiction offerings. First, Allende made a smart choice by focusing the story on Zorro's origin. By writing about these early adventures, Allende was able to take the reader into new territory with a character whose potential for original tales was seemingly exhausted. Second, she had fun with the character by finding that emotional connection she needs to write effectively. That fun was easily conveyed onto the page, thereby providing the reader with an entertaining, emotional story.
There is still room for improvement in this book. It gets more than a bit monotonous when every female character is portrayed as a strong, noble creature whose talents are unappreciated by insensitive males. And, the portrayal of Native Americans seemed a little too politically correct. But, these shortcomings don't overcome the book's energetic narrative and strong pacing. By providing a fresh, enjoyable take on a classic character, Zorro is the best fiction that Allende has written in several years.
Book Review: Telepathic Milk Brothers?
Summary: 3 Stars
I wanted to enjoy this book very much. I am a huge Zorro fan, as the "Z" tattooed on my arm will attest. The book drowns a fairly fun and adventurous story in hokey pseudo-mystical Indian hoodoo. Other than Diego fighting against the persecution of natives I wish that the Indian angle had not been done (or at least not beaten us over the head with it). Also, Diego goes from firebrand to fop within the space of a scene, in front of the same characters. It would not be hard to deduce the guise of the dandy was false. I mean he calls out the villain for a duel, hardly the act of a perfumed popinjay. Diego's relationship with the Gypsy was out of left-field and could easily been dropped, as it added nothing except to get him some action. If Bernardo is full-bloded Indian (based on his features I'm assuming) why is he given a spanish name? The natives are nothing if not fiercely proud. Though most not to the extent of Mowgli, er, Toypurnia or Grandma White Owl. Did you know Diego and Bernardo were "Milk Brothers"? Since she tells you on almost every page after they're born, you will. Oh, by the way, they have a form of telepathy between them. Right. Read it if you're a fan, though if you aren't you may enjoy it more. PS: Zorro was created about 40 years before the Disney version was made and it's amazing, thanks to home video and DVD, how it's possible to enjoy things from "before my time".Book Review: The Early Life of Zorro
Summary: 4 Stars
Zorro is a long narrative detailing the early life of the hero. the length works against the action scenes, but succeeds in filling out Diago's character and presenting the reader with a plausible explanation of how he metamorphized from Diego into the mythic hero, Zorro. Also offers good background of Spanish history during the early 1800s.