La Isla de la Pasion: Una Novela (Spanish Edition) (ISBN 0060816201)

Sad, Gripping Tale:
Clipperton Island is a harsh, unliveable atoll in the Pacific, southwest of Mexico, inhabited only by such creatures as penguins and crabs, covered with a layer of bird guano, and surrounded by treacherous coral reefs. This forbidding speck of land, claimed at various times by France and by Mexico, is the setting for a sad and heroic novel by acclaimed author Laura Restrepo. The story begins with Ramón Arnaud, a young officer in the Mexican army, who has served time in prison for desertion, and is now trying to rehabilitate himself. When he is posted to Clipperton in charge of a small Mexican garrison and as "Governor" of the tiny island, he sees it as a great opportunity and is determined to do his best. Accompanied by his new bride, Alicia, and his small contingent of troops (each with their own story to tell), the adventure begins with great promise. But then things begin to go wrong. The Mexican government goes through convulsive changes and the Clipperton mission is forgotten. The supply ships stop coming. The weather deals catastrophic blows. And the idyllic adventure slowly turns into an endless nightmare. The story is told from the point of view of a journalist trying to piece together what happened, years later, and from that of the men and women of Clipperton, whose fates were entwined for nine long years. I won't tell you what happens, of course. You'll have to get the book for yourself. It's a story of heroism, love, disillusionment, loss and grief. And of the resilience of the human spirit. Author Restrepo writes in beautiful, simple, rhythmical prose which captivates you and draws you along. Although my command of Spanish is limited I was able to follow the story and get into the minds of the characters as they struggled, suffered and triumphed. This is a wonderful, though sad, story, a story that will stay with you. I recommend it highly. Reviewed by Louis N. Gruber.

Interesante y Cautivadora:
Como siempre, bueno al menos en mi corta experiencia leyendo a Restrepo cada una de sus historias te atrapa a pesar de que siempre son libros un poco grandes en cuanto a paginas. Esta es la historia de un recien promovido capitan y gobernador de la isla Clipperton sale rumbo a la isla en compania de su recien tambien esposa y algunos soldados y sus respectivas soldaderas. El gobierno mexicano les prometio que cada dos meses llegaria un barco cargado de provisiones, noticias y cualquien cosa necesaria para la comunidad recien instalada... pero al pasar del tiempo esta embarcacion cada vez se tardaba mas en llegar hasta que no llego... la historia va dando vueltas poco a poco y cada vez se pone mejor. Llega el momento en que las acompanantes ahora son las protagonistas de la historia y una series de sucesos que cada dia son ellas las mas fuertes y cautivadoras. La isla fue descubierta por primera vez por Fernando de Magallanes en 1521 llamandola la Isla de la Pasion, aunque más tarde fue denominada Clipperton, en memoria de un pirata inglés que capitaneó un motín contra William Dampier en 1704. Actualmente, aunque Clipperton permanece desierta, sigue siendo declarada de pertenencia francesa, sin embargo existe en México un movimiento que reclama la devolución de Clipperton y que espera que el gobierno francés en un acto de buena voluntad le devuelva a nuestro país los derechos que le corresponden a su soberanía

Un gran regalo de navidad!!!:
Recibi la obra como regalo de navidad de parte de mi gran amiga Ana. Es el primer libro que leo de Laura Restrepo y me ha encantado, tomando la primicia que es basada en hechos reales, la trama te envuelve y no puedes dejar de leer hasta que terminas en libro. Te adentras en los detalles de supervivencia de ellos en la Isla de la Pasion y todas las necesidades por las que atravesaron, la lucha y nunca perdieron la esperanza... aunque ya al final quedaban solo un pequeno grupo de sobrevivientes. Excelente obra. Gracias Ana por el regalo y por dejarme conocer una de las tantas historias de tu amado Mexico. Amy

Muy grata lectura:
Es un libro que atrapa al lector desde la primera pagina. La verdad es que cuando lo compre, no conocia nada de la obra de su autora, pero una critica favorable de mi escritor favorito, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, hizo que me dicidiera a leerlo. Y no me arrepenti, realmente es digno de recomendacion.

A tale of exile, survival and hope....:
Laura Restrepo's LA ISLA DE LA PASION is very hard to put down, as it is an excellent novel. In the early 1900's, a Mexican soldier by the name of Ramon Arnaud is stationed at a tiny island in the Pacific, south of Acapulco. He moves there with his wife and a few other people. For all practical purposes, these people are stranded there, while life in Mexico goes on. The Porfirio Díaz dictatorship falls, a civil war breaks, and the country is torn apart by revolution. LA ISLA DE LA PASION is a story of exile, with all its connotations, including the dream of returning. Sickness, insanity and the force of nature play major roles in the novel. Restrepo also exposes the reader to feelings such as true friendship, love, and loyalty. Restrepo narrates the story almost 70 years after it actually happened, basically by contacting descendants of those involved. From the perspective of form, the novel is very well written and easy to read, even as Restrepo jumps from past to present and also from city to city. The plot is very interesting and the reader will always find himself wondering what will happen next and reading just a bit further before putting the book down. The characters in the story are extremely well developed and you will end up understanding them, their feelings, dreams, scale of values, and fears. Apart from being basically a tragic character, Ramon Arnaud borders with being a caricaturesque and comical typical Mexican. Even though in esence this is a sad story, there is also always a shadow of hope of returning home. Restrepo also throws in a few elements of magical realism, which adds to the delight of reading this book. The only flaws I found were a series of typical Colombian expressions (Restrepo is Colombian), which Mexicans do not use or even understand, being said by the characters. Overall, LA ISLA DE LA PASION is an excellent novel, even though in my opinion it does not reach the heights of Restrepo's DELIRIO.