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April
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- Esteban and Clara
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- The Three Marias
- Rosa the Beautiful
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April
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I am very confused about this first chapter. Mind you I haven't finished this chapter but I just reached the point where it changes speakers to Rosa's fiance and I am still confused who was speaking in the first section of chapter 1. I'm not sure if they said who it was or if it will be revealed later but if you could please help me get out of my befuddled state that would be awesome!
ReplyDeleteThe first chapter was a very interesting way to start the book, and I'm enjoying all the different points of view intertwining with each other throughout the story. However, while I'm not having a lot of trouble figuring out whose point of view I'm reading for all the other sections, I'm confused along with Katie about who the speaker in the first section of chapter 1 is. In the end I assume the mysterious speaker will reveal themself (if its someone we haven't been introduced to yet), but I'm really impatient to know who they are and why they're using Clara's notebooks to, "Reclaim the past and overcome terrors of my own" (pg 1). Also, why is this speaker popping up randomly throughout the book? (they appear again throughout the first two chapters I've read and mention the notebooks again on pg. 75, second to last paragraph, and it's driving me nuts) Along with that, I've noticed I'm really at a loss at trying to figure out where this story is taking me. One moment its a perfectly normal story with a really strict, scary priest yelling at some poor old lady about supposedly being a hussy and the next Clara has the ability to predict the future, move objects, etc and Rosa is, "white and smooth, without a wrinkle, like a porcelain doll, with green hair and yellow eyes" (pg 4) and everyone thinks she's extraordinarily beautiful, while in my head I'm picturing an alien. The first chapter is a lot to take in because of this, and because the reader has no idea what a Barrabas is and why it came by the sea until page 18. However like I said before it is very interesting and gets better the more I read.
ReplyDeleteLadies...be patient. The speaker will be revealed. Much of the book is organized this way Kaitlyn, but I promise you that while the story doesn't get less strange exactly, it does become easier to follow. But, you both bring up some wonderful points about the importance of knowing who the narrator is and of what purpose is their narration. Keep it up!
ReplyDeleteI'm just about done with the first chapter. Its hard for me to stay focused on it cause there are so many narration changes. I've had to reread paragraphs a few times until it finally clicked. Rosa does not seem like such an elegant character from my point of view. On page 4, Rosa is described at birth as being "white and smooth, without a wrinkle, with green hair and yellow eyes--the most beautiful creature to be born on earth since the days of original sin." She also has translucent skin in areas where veins and textures of her muscles could be seen. She is depicted as an angel which completely blew mind. Her description makes her sound ugly, looks like an alien, and possibly zombie or corpse like. Its really odd.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first learned about Barrabas I thought he was a hairy child of some sort that the family decided to adopot because of Clara's soft heart for the creature. It stumped me when I found out it was a dog, but it still made sense. I'm hoping the rest of the book will be a bit easier to comprehend and follow but so far I'm liking the book.
The first chapter gave alot of insight and I believe it will lead in to alot of the rest of the novel. Such as how beautiful Rosa is, described like a mermaid. But in my opinion green hair and yellow eye (page 4) would not be attractive but more frightening.
ReplyDeleteEsteban is such a unique character. When it switches to his point of view, my reaction was "wow". He is "madly inlove" with Rosa from first sight. We all know its not love but, then she doesnt even want to try with him. Until she is convienced. I don't understand why he tried so hard. Maybe I just have a lack of romance skills.
I started this book while on vacation and I am really enjoying it.
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ReplyDeleteWith this chapter finished I'll have to admit that only two things that I really had a reaction to. First was the description of Rosa. I know its been mentioned before but her description did not make me think that she was beautiful in any way. Although the description of her birth did cause me to anticipate her death. This is due to the fact that, in a majority of what I've read, watched, or played, anything that mentions a baby was born 'smooth, quiet, perfect, beautiful, etc' ususally means that the person will either die or cause death.
ReplyDeleteWhen it was revealed that Barrabas was a dog my reaction was two words 'Wait, what?' Although I thought it made a little more sense after rereading the description in the beginning I still hung on to that first opinion.
This first chapter really grabbed my attention, with the talk of adventure and, of course, the introduction and death of Rosa. Allende provides the reader with just enough history concerning the family, and makes remarks about things that are going to happen later on, which makes me want to keep reading. She throws in plenty of twists and turns within this chapter alone. She has such great literary skills, especially with describing Clara and her feelings. One of my favorite parts so far was the remark Clara made to Father Restrepo (p.7). Clara is the character that I really feel connected to in this novel so far. When Clara felt the excitement of Marcos' plane adventure (p.14), I did too. When Rosa died (p.26), I cried. When Clara blamed herself for making all these terrible things happen, just because she could predict them (p.37), I felt the desire to reach out and console this child who was so full of guilt that it hurt me to read it. Just based on this chapter I can tell that I will love the story contained within this novel.
ReplyDeleteI wrote this just after reading the first chapter, and now that I'm about half the way finished with the novel, I was wondering if the speaker of the story is the Granddaughter that Esteban keeps mentioning.
Although i have finished the book, i believe the first chapter was probably the best beginning this book could have had. It was slightly confusing at first and the multiple view points did confuse me, but it also made it easier to decipher the truth and gave insight into the characters.
ReplyDeleteRosa was probably my fave character.....until she died that is :) And i thought that her death is really what put this whole novel into motion. I kind of liked her green hair and yellow eyes because it made me imagine the extraordinary things that happen in this novel. This was a great beginning!
The first chapter was very odd but so far I am loving this book. Esteban's love for Rosa is profound and kind of sad. When Rosa dies I feel bad for him. I could never understand losing the person you love not long before you are to get married. He was mad for her to the point that he lived alone for so long because all he wanted was to be with her. On page 21, "I'm much happier... I've suffered more than most."
ReplyDeleteI don't imagine Rosa to be beautiful but instead I love Clara. This small girl is known for her psychic powers and her huge heart. After Rosa dies she goes into a massive depression where no one can comfort her and she becomes silent. It is also sad that Rosa's death had such a big toll on this little girls life.
Shayna
ReplyDeleteThe first chapter was extremly hard for me to get through. I was constantly going back and re-reading pages to make sure i understood it all. I would have to say that the first few pages gave out a ton of information for me, however like everyone else i am not sure who is actually speaking. Not knowing who was speaking confused me a little because i did not know the purpose as to why the narrator would tell us all these things. What is THEIR reason for explaining everything to us. I agree with Ashlie about Clara, I felt connected to her in the book. Like when something happened to her i felt her pain or her joy. I was very interested in Claras power to just forget things. As she forgot father Restrepo's words "Possessed... She's possessed by the devil" (P.7). Out of her entire family she is the only one who could just let it go. She was not afraid of father Restrepos or other peoples curses as everyone else was. There is something about her that i really like!
I think that the introduction to Rosa the Beautiful was also the introduction of magical realism. My first reaction when reading she had green hair and yellow eyes was.."weirdooo" but maybe that was to set the mood for the magical realism novel Allende was trying to create. The beginning also gives a glimpse of Clara's unusual personality and the fact that she seems to be an outspoken individual, which we see when she butts in on a sermon on one of the holiest days of the year, with "psst! father restrepo! if that story about hell is a lie..." (to educate yourself further on the quote, it's found on p.7 :)) There's something about how you meet Clara in the story that automatically makes her a main character and is an interest right from the start.
ReplyDeleteThe hardest part of summer reading is getting through the first ten pages. I'll admit the first page was intimidating. I must have read it three or four times before I could plunge into the rest of the book. After the ten page hurdle, I really started to enjoy the novel. It was a good pick, Mrs. Matysak!!
ReplyDeleteAfter completing the book, I realized just how significant the first chapter is to the rest of the story. This is where the reader is introduced to the founding characters in the novel as well as a few motifs like politics, death, and the paranormal.
However, I was left a little upset. For such a great chapter, it had a terrible ending paragraph.
"She stayed until the young man she had never seen before kissed Rosa on the lips, the neck, the breasts, and between the legs; until he wiped her with a sponge, dressed her in her embroidered nightgown, and panting, rearranged her hair." pg. 37
Why was it necessary for Rosa's body to be molested by the doctor's assistant? It doesn't appear to have any further significance in the novel. I feel as though the author was just trying to get a rise out of the reader. For me, it lowers the impact of the first chapter.
When I first started reading this chapter I thought I was in for a boring book. Then when I read about Clara and her sister Rosa I was definitely wrong. On page seven Clara is at church asking the father a question and uses foul language I about died! I just imagined myself doing that in church and I would have been called "Possessed by the devil" too.
ReplyDeleteI don't really agree with Darienne about the whole molesting Rosas body thing. I took it differently than that. I thought that the author was trying to let the reader know just how beautiful Rosa was.We all knew how beautiful she was but this just adds to it. Rosa was dead and the doctor's assistant kissed her dead corpse in every place imaginable. Even in death she was breath taking and kissable.
I disagree to many of the others thoughts that Rosa isn't beautiful. Yes she isn't the normal but she has a unique beauty even from birth.
ReplyDelete(p.4) At birth Rosa was white and smooth, without a wrinkle, like a porcelain doll, with green hair and yellow eyes-the most beautiful creature to be born on earth since the days of original sin, as the midwife put it, making the sign of the cross.
A little later you read this part that makes me imagine a unique angelic image.
(p.5) Rosa bowed her head and a ray of sunlight pierced the Gothic stained-glass windows of the church, outlining her face in a halo of light.
This chapter is probably the best chapter in the book. I enjoy reading literature filled with action and adventure and the character, Uncle Marcos fits the category. His life was filled with wild and outlandish behaviors. I also enjoyed reading of the different del Valle children. Each child had his/her own peculiar trait such as Rosa the Beautiful “with green hair and yellow eyes” and that “she was immune to vanity”. Clara had her clairvoyance that made her unique, and her uncle made a business out of it too. I thought that was a clever way for moneymaking. Overall this chapter started the book on a great tone that almost made me like it until I continued on to the next chapter.
ReplyDeleteThis chapter really threw you into the oddness and magic of the del Valle family. In the first few pages we hear of Clara (as a child), who blurts out a comment in church that sends the del Valle family leaving. When the pastor claimed she is possessed by the devil, it was my first prediction of magical things happening. Rosa the beautiful was introduced with green hair and yellow eyes. The exotic description of her beauty was shocking and a little weird, but that just goes with the theme of the book. With the death of Rosa came one of the few times I was sympathetic towards Esteban Trueba. "I felt that without Rosa life no longer had any meaning. All the air went out of me as if I were a punctured balloon; all my enthusiasm vanished." (Pages 32 & 33). The whole reason of Esteban leaving was to support Rosa, and it broke my heart how all his hard work meant nothing without Rosa.
ReplyDeleteAnother part of the book that puzzled and disgusted me, was when Dr. Cuevas and his assistant were sucking the dead Rosa's blood. I can't imagine being Clara, who was just a child watching those terrible things happen to her sister.
This chapter was a whirlwind of a beggining. The del Valle family is presented to us as mysterious, unpredictable, and some what magical. This chapter really got me excited for the book, especially with all the foreshadowing that goes on.