Zorro: Una Novela (Spanish Edition)

In Zorro, Isabel Allende delves into the story of the pulp fiction hero and tells how Diego de la Vega becomes Zorro. Staying within the confines of the legend and yet telling a fresh and innovative story, she traces the life of Don Diego, born to a wealthy Spanish landowner and a Indian woman,

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raised in California with his Indian blood brother, Bernardo, schooled in Spain, all the while learning and perfecting his alter-ego, Zorro. He then returns to California to fight for justice for the downtrodden and ill-used.

Staying true to the historical background of both Napoleonic Europe and the Spanish held colony of California, the author breathes life into the myth that originally saw the light of day in various dime store novels. I, myself, fell in love with Zorro when watching the late fifties TV show with Guy Williams and then again in 1998 with the movie The Mask of Zorro starring Antonio Banderas. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and would recommend it to any Zorro fan.

Offering respect to a legend and giving him a fully fleshed character, all the while writing in an expressive, passionate and, at times, humorous manner, Zorro is a compelling saga that offers romance, adventure and plenty of action.

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By Allende's reckoning, protagonists are lost in the world if the stories don't start with the stories of their parents or even their grandparents. It takes a very long time for this book to actually get around to Zorro, but the result is an immersive world created through lyrical prose. Fans of

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Zorro may have a difficult time at first, but fans of Allende will not be disappointed. It's clear that Allende found the story to be a tremendous amount of fun -- the sheer joy of writing it shines through the printed words.

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Isabel Allende in this novel takes all the elements of the legend of Zorro and turns them into a compelling novel. Diego de la Vega is born in Alta California, three-quarters Spanish and one quarter Indian. His mother's Indian servant gives birth the same day to Bernardo, and for the rest of their

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lives the two boys are closer than brothers.

Allende builds her hero, Zorro, element by element. His Indian grandmother teaches the boys about nature, spirit, and healing. While finishing his education in Spain, he learns the sword from a master, and the Gypsies he gets to know in Spain teach him sleight-of-hand and showmanship. He learns balance on the ships to and from Spain.

More than that, Allende creates compelling characters, Diego, Bernardo, Diego's parents, the sisters Juliana and Isobel, and the pirate Jean Lafitte.

Fine read.

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A child of two worlds -- the son of an aristocratic Spanish military man turned landowner and a Shoshone warrior woman -- young Diego de la Vega cannot silently bear the brutal injustices visited upon the helpless in late-eighteenth-century California. And so a great hero is born -- skilled in

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athleticism and dazzling swordplay, his persona formed between the Old World and the New -- the legend known as Zorro.

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Isabel Allende is one of my favorite writers, and with Zorro, she gains further admiration.

This is her version of the legend of Zorro– that swashbuckling masked crusader for justice. He is Diego dela Vega, born to a Spanish father and a half-American Indian mother, raised in a California hacienda

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in the early 1800’s. He is educated in both parents’ cultures– together with his milk brother Bernardo, Diego learns how to fence and how to apply Indian medicine. At fifteen he is sent to Spain to study and it is here that he grabs his destiny by the reins and invents his alter-ego, Zorro (meaning ‘fox’). Like a fox, he is quick, mysterious, and cunning. With the help of gypsies and a secret league, Diego learns the skills that will make him a legend.

His five years in Spain are memorable ones, building his character. He falls in love with Juliana, the daughter of his father’s friend who has been his host in Barcelona. When misfortune strikes the family, Diego aids them and sails back to the United States with Juliana and her sister Isabel. He finds out though, that his own family needs rescuing too. Here he takes Zorro to the next level, vanquishing his enemies and putting the crusader’s name on everyone’s lips for generations to come.

Allende writes the story from a first-person point of view, although the narrator’s identity is not revealed until the very end. The novel is funny and thoroughly engaging. Whenever I read Allende works time would pass by so quickly and before I knew it, I’d reached the end. This one is no exception. The characters are well-fleshed out, making them seem like my friends. Of course, this is an adventure story, so don’t expect ultra-realistic 3D characterisation. It’s a legend and a happy story so the main characters end up happy and the villains are somewhat one-dimensional but it is a very fun read.

I also found it educational as she weaved in some Indian and gypsy culture stories. I also liked that she linked some significant American and European historical events to the story. I don’t know how much literary license she took, but it all made for an entertaining novel.

In the epilogue the narrator hints of other stories to tell, and I wonder if there’s a sequel or spin-off to this. She has done this before, weaving a new story, “Portrait in Sepia,” out of characters in “Daughter of Fortune.”

I think that Allende proves her versatility here. I have read only her ‘dramatic’ books and none of her young adult novels yet but I’m glad to know that she can take comedy and adventure as well as she does drama and tragedy.

Rating: 4 out of 5, ok! I recommend this. If there’s a sequel or spin-off I’ll surely read it too.

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"Born in southern California late in the eighteenth century, he is a child of two worlds. Diego de la Vega's father is an aristocratic Spanish military man turned landowner; his mother, a Shoshone warrior. Diego learns from his maternal grandmother, White Owl, the ways of her tribe while receiving

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from his father lessons in the art of fencing and in cattle branding. It is here, during Diego's childhood, filled with mischief and adventure, that he witnesses the brutal injustices dealt Native Americans by European settlers and first feels the inner conflict of his heritage." "At the age of sixteen, Diego is sent to Barcelona for a European education. In a country chafing under the corruption of Napoleonic rule, Diego follows the example of his celebrated fencing master and joins La Justicia, a secret underground resistance movement devoted to helping the powerless and the poor. With this tumultuous period as a backdrop, Diego falls in love, saves the persecuted, and confronts for the first time a great rival who emerges from the world of privilege." "Between California and Barcelona, the New World and the Old, the persona of Zorro is formed, a great hero is born, and the legend begins. After many adventures - duels at dawn, fierce battles with pirates at sea, and impossible rescues - Diego de la Vega, a.k.a. Zorro, returns to America to reclaim the hacienda on which he was raised and to seek justice for all who cannot fight for it themselves."--BOOK JACKET.

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The book was both enjoyable and entertaining. I liked the historical references and her descriptions of the differing cultures. I found many of Diego's narrow escapes a bit unbelievable as they continued towards the end of the book. Allende is a marvelous story teller and her style makes the book a

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pleasant, quick read.

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super, fast read because it is gripping and interesting.couldn't put down
(liz)

Pirate kidnappings, sword fights, voodoo rituals, prison escapes, spirit journeys, Gypsy circuses-- if you can think of something that sounds adventurous then Allende has tried to use it in this novel. Well written, and containing interesting and believable characters, the book still has some

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problems. In places the plot seemed forced and there was at least one notable hole in the storyline. I expected better from someone whose work is usually of a much higher grade. Also, I never really did feel much pathos for Zorro. Even in his super-hero form he was too much of a fop.
Despite these issues, however, the book is a fun read. The author has created a through and detailed world of caballeros and damsels thrown into a nearly realistic political drama of good and evil. The book, like its hero, is far from perfect, but it certainly ranks as at least interesting.

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I picked this book up based solely on the excellent reputation of Isabel Allende and was not disappointed. Though I have little interest in the legend of Zorro, I found this book captivating. Allende’s prose is beautifully lyrical. I was mesmerized by her rich descriptions of locales,

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particularly Southern California. The action was just as exciting and daring as I would have expected.

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As a big fan of the character and the genre, I was surprisingly disappointed. All the blatant attempts to update the character and shoehorn the story into every version of Zorro mythology could have been overlooked if the writing hadn't so often abandoned dialogue for narration in times where the

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former would have worked better.

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This book was definitely entertaining; Diego's adventures are fun. I think this book is missing something, though. I didn't feel connected to it, maybe because Diego disappointed me in the end. I think everything was too simply done, allowing the book to be enjoyable with little to feel emotional

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about. I did like it as I was reading it, but I can definitely feel the lack now that I've finished.

Allende's writing (as much as I can tell from the translation) is engaging, wonderful, and light. No problems there. It is simply the cookie-cutter characters that failed to live up to their promise. There is a villain, and there are several heroes, and after the opening promises of character development, none of them move forward. That is what disappointed me.

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Great fun! This brings back memories of the Tyrone Power movie and the TV series with more humor and sensitivity. Wearing the mask apparently was not only to protect Zorro's real identity, but to pin back his ears!

Retells the Zorro tale but from a much more mystical point of view. Set in 17th century southern California, Allende, as usual, has strong women characters as well as the male protagonist and his Native American companion. She weaves in Shoshone culture, which plays a crucial role in the story.

A light-hearted and fun book, though Tyrone Power in "The Mark of Zorro" will always be my standard for this story. Ms. Allende's portrayal gives us not only a more rounded Zorro, but much deeper female roles.

Another library book. A fun story. I prefered the story by Jan Adkins. He seemed to have a better hold of his character's character. Also, this often seemed to slip into romance novel mode. However, it was a fun story, not painful to read. I probably won't read her other books though.

I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. It's clever and funny and moves surprisingly well. I wasn't big on the introduction of the author into the book, though. I did like that Zorro was a human character that we got to know from childhood.

A readable adventure tale of the making of Zorro -- Diego's childhood and adolescence. It's a far cry from Allende's earlier magical realism, but it touches on historical events of the early 19th century -- the persecution of California Indians under Spanish rule, the Napoleonic invasion of Spain,

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the Romany in Spain, and the New Orleans of the pirate, Jean Lafitte and voodoo priestess, Marie LaVeau. Entertaining, but certainly not my favorite Allende.

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I don't like all of Isabel Allende's books, but this was a nice surprise! I like how she came up with a childhood for Zorro which explains most of the characteristics of the Zorro that I know from tv. One of the things I noticed was that my reading wasn’t influenced at all by the fact that I knew

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how the story would end, because it is written well and remains exciting and interesting.

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I usually love her books. But this was actually boring. Only highlight was the part abou Juliana, the girl he loved, and the pirate Jean Lafitte, and how they ended up together. That was interesting, and I hope she does a story about them.
11/7/05

This novel tells the story of Diego De La Vega whose love for justice drives him to become the black clad hero known as Zorro. I enjoyed this novel because I learned that just about anyone can make a difference. The action-packed novel should be read by everyone.

Fictional account of legend of Zorro. Too many characters that don't lead anywhere. Seems to be leading up to something all the way through to the last page, but never gets there. Still she is a great writer for historical realness.

This could more properly have been titled "The Origins of Zorro;" it is a fine adventure story, and in this retelling has considerable psychological depth. Deep, too, is the sorrow flowing from some of the clearly-told depredations in the story, like the rape and murder of Bernardo's mother - the

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event which markes the onset of his lifelong mute nature. This book does have a fun and interesting run-in between Don Diego and the pirate Jean Laffitte.

I wasn't sure what I expected when I opened this up. What I got was a brightly-told, quickly-paced, realistic telling of one our favorite legends.

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A richly developed portrait of Diego de la Vega's youth and education. As with most of Allende's work, this novel is romantic and energetic, with lush, detailed description and clever ties to contemporary issues. Although it's almost 400 pages long, it moves quickly. Excellent summer reading,

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although perhaps not quite vintage Allende.

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