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“Timely, provocative . . . emotionally satisfying . . . [a story about] the kindness of strangers who become family.”—The New York Times Book Review
AN NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
Vienna, 1938. Samuel Adler is five years old when his father disappears during Kristallnacht—the night his family loses everything. As her child’s safety becomes ever harder to guarantee, Samuel’s mother secures a spot for him on a Kindertransport train out of Nazi-occupied Austria to England. He boards alone, carrying nothing but a change of clothes and his violin.
Arizona, 2019. Eight decades later, Anita Díaz and her mother board another train, fleeing looming danger in El Salvador and seeking refuge in the United States. But their arrival coincides with the new family separation policy, and seven-year-old Anita finds herself alone at a camp in Nogales. She escapes her tenuous reality through her trips to Azabahar, a magical world of the imagination. Meanwhile, Selena Durán, a young social worker, enlists the help of a successful lawyer in hopes of tracking down Anita’s mother.
Intertwining past and present, The Wind Knows My Name tells the tale of these two unforgettable characters, both in search of family and home. It is both a testament to the sacrifices that parents make and a love letter to the children who survive the most unfathomable dangers—and never stop dreaming.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
June 6, 2023 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9780593740002
- File size: 230137 KB
- Duration: 07:59:27
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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Starred review from April 10, 2023
Refugee children flee from war and unrest in the powerful latest from Allende (Violeta). In 1938 Austria, five-year-old Samuel Adler is grudgingly placed by his mother on a rescue train to Great Britain. He completes the journey, and never sees his parents again. Samuel struggles in an orphanage until he settles in 1942 with a Quaker couple. At 25, he is a violinist with the London Philharmonic, and soon his interest in jazz takes him to America. In a parallel narrative set in 2019, Anita Diaz, seven, leaves El Salvador with her mother to escape ceaseless gang violence, and the two embark on an odyssey that sees them traveling on top of train cars and by foot. They make it to the U.S., where a new family separation policy leaves Anita, who is partially blind, alone in Nogales, Ariz., and her mother deported. Anita shuttles from one host family to another while a social worker and lawyer work tirelessly to safeguard her until she can be reunited with her mother. The two threads converge, first, with bitter irony—Samuel’s grandson is a presidential adviser who advocates for harsh immigration policies (and will remind readers of Trump administration political adviser Stephen Miller)—and, by the end, with hope. The dual narrative structure gives historical weight to the contemporary story line, and Allende finds real depth in her characters, especially when portraying their sacrifices. This authentic and emotionally harrowing work is a triumphant return to form. Agent: Johanna Castillo, Writers House. -
Narrators Edoardo Ballerini and Maria Liatis couldn't be better in Isabel Allende's intricate, heartrending novel. From 1938 Europe to 2019 America, numerous upended lives are woven into a fascinating tapestry. Samuel Adler must leave Nazi Germany via the Kindertransport; Leticia Cordero narrowly escapes the El Mozote massacre in El Salvador; because of the Trump government's heartless immigration policy, 7-year-old partially blind Anita is left alone in a detention center after her mother is deported. Ballerini is simply outstanding. Every voice he delivers is believable; every emotion feels authentic. As Anita, Liatis sounds like a child--displaced, afraid, and dependent on a determined social worker and a sympathetic lawyer. Allende's poignant storytelling and sharp criticism of unfeeling bureaucracies are made even better by two remarkable performances. S.J.H. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine -
June 10, 2024
In 1938 Vienna, following the devastation wrought during Kristallnacht, five-year-old Samuel Adler is sent alone to England to escape Nazi persecution. Samuel is the only member of his family to survive World War II. He becomes a talented musician and studies jazz in New Orleans, where he meets his future wife, a high-society activist and artist. Eventually, they settle in California. In 2019, seven-year-old Anita Diaz and her mother flee violence in El Salvador, crossing the border into the U.S., where they are detained. Anita is separated from her mother, and after several months, her mother disappears. Social worker Selena Duran takes up Anita's cause, trying to locate her mother and get sanctuary status for both. Celebrated Chilean novelist Allende (A Long Petal of the Sea) connects the stories of these disparate individuals with observations on femicide, immigration, and exile, as well as family, love, and loss. The text is expertly performed by narrators Edoardo Ballerini and Maria Liatis. Ballerini brings his signature blend of lyricism and intimacy to his narration, while Liatis's portrayal of Anita is particularly moving. VERDICT Expect many holds; a powerful listen that should please Allende's fans and those who like fiction that incorporates current affairs.--Joanna M. Burkhardt
Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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