The Wind Knows My Name is not so much a novel as an indictment, and perhaps a warning. It’s a slender tale, though it’s three tales in one, and there are enough interesting characters for a few more tales which are only hinted at.
The indictment, though, is not hinted at. The story starts with Kristallnacht, the unleashing of the Nazis’ first fury against the Jews, which would end with six million dead. It’s an old story, well known. Or perhaps it’s not as well-known as I would like to think, and that is the raison d’etre for this book.
This is a tale which constantly reminds us of the incredible cruelty always lurking under the surface in the human race, by focusing on three refugees in three different eras, all torn from their families, their cultures, their homes, all by the casual violence of mobs which can arise at any time, urged on by the powers that be. Samuel Adler is one of the Kindertransport, some 10,000 Jewish children taken from their families to rescue them from the inevitability of the camps. Leticia Cordero is the sole survivor of the El Mozote massacre of 1982, when the El Salvadoran army wiped out an entire village in a counterinsurgency campaign. The third refugee is seven-year-old Anita Diaz, in 2019, fleeing with her mother from a murderous security guard in El Salvador, seeking asylum in America. But this is 2019, Trump’s América, and Anita and her mother are separated, as so many were. The tales of these three refugees’ lives are interwoven over the course of eighty years, along with those who damage them and those who try to heal them.
Does Ms. Allende equate the cruelty of Trump’s policies with the savagery of the Nazis? You’ll have to decide that for yourselves, and decide whether American policy long before Trump bears some responsibility for the ongoing chaos in Central America. This novel is a challenge to the conscience.

I have read many books by Isabelle Allende, some in the original Spanish, so I was excited to receive an ARC copy of her latest book, “The Wind Knows My Name” from NetGalley and the publisher, Ballentine Books. The novel alternates among four narrators: Samuel, Letitia, Serena and Anita. The novel begins with Samuel who is six years old during “Kristallnacht,” (the Night of Broken Glass) when his father’s doctor’s office and the upstairs apartment where the family lived were vandalized by Nazi gangs terrorizing Jewish homes and businesses. His father was beaten and ultimately sent to a concentration camp where he died shortly thereafter. Samuel and his mother were hidden by a sympathetic World War I veteran. Samuel’s mother decided to send him to England on one of the few Kindertransports that transported Jewish children to England and placed them in foster homes to protect them from the Nazis. After the war, Samuel learned that both his parents had perished in separate concentration camps. He eventually moved to San Francisco with his wife Nadine, whom he met during a trip to New Orleans.

Letitia was a young girl when her father traveled with her to a hospital in the capital of El Salvador far North of their little village, where her chronic stomach pain could be diagnosed and cured. While they were away from the village, it was destroyed and the entire community was massacred by Government soldiers trying to root out guerillas. Shortly thereafter, Letitia and her father crossed the border into the United States, where her father found odd jobs to support them, helped by another immigrant, Cruz Torres. After her father’s death and a succession of failed marriages, Letitia reencountered Cruz Torres who recommended Letitia’s services as a housekeeper to Samuel’s wife, Nadine.

Serena is a Mexican-American social worker for the Magnolia Project, an organization that helps immigrant children who were separated from their parents during their detention by border patrol, trying to reunite them with their parents and obtaining the services of volunteer attorneys to help seek asylum for them. During the course of her work, Serena meets Anita, a seven year old from El Salvador who was separated from her mother at the American border, and has since lost touch with her. Anita is assigned to various homes and foster families while Serena and Frank, an attorney who has volunteered his services, attempt to find Anita’s mother.

During the course of the book, the connections among all the characters are slowly revealed, until all the disparate individuals work together for Anita’s benefit, strengthening their own lives in the process.

This novel did an excellent job of shedding light on the plight of illegal immigrants in the United States, particularly the children who are separated from their parents at the border. That said, the novel itself relied too much on summaries of events, rather than relating events as they unfolded. For example, the first third of the book was dedicated almost entirely to relating the histories of the individual characters from childhood to adulthood. Also, even in the contemporary sections, there was a lot of summarizing the feelings and events rather than relating them. This made it difficult to engage with the characters because as a reader I felt a slight remove from them. However, despite these reservations, it is a worthwhile book to read as the individual characters’ stories are interesting and the information provided about the plight of immigrants is illuminating.

(Thank you to NetGalley and Ballentine Books for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review).

Isabel Allende really knows how to weave a story that gets you emotionally invested. First our heart breaks for Samuel. Then it breaks again for Anita. The Wind Knows My Name is about the agonizing decisions parents are forced to make in order to save their children's lives. And, in turn, the coping mechanisms these children use to cope with their trauma. Samuel's story begins in 1938 and Anita's eerily similar story begins in 2019. While this is fiction, its easy to imagine these as real circumstances happening to real people. Speaking of people, there are a lot of them to keep track of and we bounce around between stories quite a bit so I found myself forgetting some of the ones who don't play a dominant role. I really liked how the two stories twist and turn to eventually come together. Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC of this book.

Isabel Allende is a Queen, and this story will always stick with me. This story interweaves three stories in the past and present tracing the ripple effects of war and immigration from one child in Europe in World War II and another in present day in the covid pandemic. It is about conflicts in which children have no part but suffer the most. Allende teaches us that the wind knows us, no matter how hard and hopeless life may be, so we are never lost. She tells a powerful and heartbreaking story about three families: Samuel Adler, a Jew who through his mother's love, managed to escape Vienna during a time where the Jewish community was being exterminated, Lety, a migrant from El Salvador who lost her family during a massacre that plummeted her village, Marisol andAnita, a mother and daughter seeking asylum in the US after fleeing a violence ridden El Salvador. The timelines were so easy to follow and I cared for these families so much. I learned a lot about immigration, and it is relevant to the times we are living.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for this free ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Release date: Jun 06, 2023

Thank you @netgalley for my Arc of Isabel Allende's book the Wind Knows my Name. Allende is an author that I will read everything she writes, so I was excited to be chosen to read this ARC. It was fantastic. The story was compelling and the writing was descriptive and beautiful. Allende wove the stories of the past and present together seamlessly and included current events of the pandemic and immigration in a thoughtful way.

The Wind Knows my name is an emotional book and a tough subject matter. It starts with Samuel Adler who is 6 years old when he gets separated from his family during Kristallnacht. Then you meet Anita Diaz, a 7 year old child who is separated from her mother who is trying to immigrate from El Salvador. Anita is blind and captures the heart of her social worker. The book tells the story of the immigration system and the foster system through Anita.

I don’t think that I have ever not enjoyed a book written by Isabel Allende and “The Wind Knows My Name” was no exception. Initially, as characters were introduced I questioned the book…and wondered how this section would resolve. Of course, for me at least, the book became a page turner that, by the end , caused me to have tears running down my cheeks. What a wonderful, restorative read this was! The subject matter is timely, and covers a lot of ground. Many current events were included - some good, some not so good, and some just plain horrific.

Lyrical prose, as always, well crafted, complex characters, and plot that speaks to the heart….this book thoroughly “floated-my-personal-taste-in-reading” boat! Well done Ms.Allende - as always.

I was very excited to receive the new Isabel Allende ARC, The Wind Knows My Name, from NetGalley, in return for an honest review.

This latest book weaves in the stories of moments in history where atrocities force people to flee their homelands. This is the narrative that connects the characters, dating back to the days ahead of WWII Austria, El Salvador in the 1990s, and the immigration policies put into place under Trump, leaving families torn apart, with children abandoned or unfound, and the impact of COVID on reuniting families.

This is all very serious, heavy material, but Allende always manages to make historical moments (weird to think of COVID as history) both personal, but yet lighter than it might otherwise be, without diminishing the heft of these moments.

This book begins with a 5 year old Samuel's family life as the Nazi's began invading Austria. We learn about his family and community, and then how he is sent to live as an orphan. This path is similar to Anita's path from her hometown, separated from her mother 50 years later, at the U.S. border, and put into a kid's camp. Throughout the book, there are moments of surprise, of warmth, and of the magic that Allende ads, this time through Anita's stories to her younger sister, as a way to keep herself protected from the world. We also learn about the people who try to rectify these life events, coming to the rescue of these children left behind. Selena and Frank's, immigration specialist and attorney, story was less interesting to me, but also a good storyline.

Often, I don't wish for a book to be longer, or that we could learn more about each character, but I did find myself wanting to know more about characters briefly mentioned, like Samuel (Mr. Bogart)'s children, or learn more about Anita's mother's life in more depth before they fled San Salvador. But this is also with keeping the viewpoint of the narrator for that chapter in mind.

This is a really lovely book, certainly worth reading, especially if you have enjoyed Isabel Allende's other books.

This was an interesting book accounting for the immigration of people from multiple countries. I was unaware of some of the turmoil taking place at the time. I enjoyed reading about the characters. I do wish the book had tied everything/characters together a little earlier so readers could get more about their time together.

Isabel Allende is one of my favorite authors. The Wind Knows My Name is yet another reason this is true. The main theme of her newest novel is immigration but there are other numerous, thought provoking themes that would make this an excellent book discussion choice.

The story begins in Austria during the Nazi reign of terror. Samuel Adler is a five year old music prodigy who is also Jewish. To save his life his desperate mother puts him on the Kindertransport train. He ends up in England but it takes much time before his life has any semblance of normalcy. Allende depicts his life in great detail explaining how he comes to live in San Francisco.

The story shifts to current times and then weaves the story of immigrant families, both legal and illegal. Eventually Allende makes clear how these families and Samuel Adler cross paths to benefit the welfare of Anita Diaz who is separated from her mother while illegally crossing the border into the United States. It is a story that will keep you up at night!

The terror of leaving one's home due to horrific conditions, often life or death situations, is clearly depicted by Isabel Allende. I doubt anyone who reads this book will not be affected. We have learned nothing, it seems, from history and children continue to be the ones who suffer the most. Samuel's and Anita's lives are juxtaposed in a believable manner and their story will resonate with the reader.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the opportunity of an early read.

Wow. What a heartbreakingly beautiful book.
First, i'd like to give thanks to Netgalley, Random House Publishing, and Isabel Allende for the honor of allowing me an opportunity to read an advanced copy.
This book connects us to Samuel Adler, a Jew who through his mother's love, managed to escape Vienna during a time where the jewish community was being exterminated, Lety, a migrant from El Salvador who lost her family during a massacre that plummeted her village, Marisol & Anita, a mother and daughter seeking asylum in the US after fleeing a violence ridden El Salvador. With the help of Selena and Frank, the mentioned characters come together to form a bond and family, and overall, heal.
Isabel Allende's writing is so splendid! Although it is an interconnected story, the author made it perfectly clear what was going on and whose story you were following at all times. The timelines were all so easy to follow. As an immigrant myself, I grew to love and care for these characters so deeply. I cannot wait for the official release so that I may purchase and reread for many times to come. I will never stop talking about this book!!

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Much of this novel is beautiful and poignant, however I kept feeling like I was reading their back stories and was waiting for the book to begin and connect.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing group, and Isabel Allende for the opportunity to read this ARC, in exchange for an honest review. Like all of Allende’s other books, it goes without saying that the writing in this book absolutely blew me away. It was absolutely beautiful and one of my favorite things about her books is that she has a way of making every character feel so utterly real, showing all of elements of their character whether it be good or bad. This book was no exception.
At the start of the book, we begin to learn about our main characters and at the end of each vignette, I was certainly invested. The experiences relayed ranged from the WWII/Holocaust era, the violence and political unrest in El Salvador in the 80s, to the modern day border crisis. Allende definitely didn’t shy away from the reality of these crises and I was certainly rooting for the characters as they navigated through the book. The book progresses on and we continue to learn about the lives of each of our characters, as they slowly begin to converge and ultimately connect. I did wish that the stories had tied together a bit earlier in the book or that we would get a better hint of how the characters stories would come together. The lack of a connection left me feeling a bit disjointed but, ultimately I was still interested enough to continue on and finish. I would definitely recommend this book to any Allende fan or new readers interested in a character driven story.

3.5 stars I read this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I have read many, many books by Isabel Allende. She is my all-time favorite writer. I usually read her work in Spanish, since her writing is so rich and descriptive. This was the first book I read of hers translated in English. There was nothing lost in translation. The writing was just as descriptive and beautiful.

This story is relevant to the times we are living. It deals with families separated at the border and is set during the pandemic. It begins during Kristallnacht and tells the story of a young boy named Samuel Adler. He was separated from his parents during WW2 and his parents were sent to concentration camps. His story is paralleled with Anita, a partially blind girl from El Salvador who escapes with her mom to the border after her mom was shot by a man who became obsessed with her. They are separated at the border and Anita goes from one foster situation to another until a relative is found and she lives with her and, coincidentally, an elderly Samuel Adler.

All in all, I loved the writing. It is a story that includes the author’s political views, although that didn’t particularly bother me. I do think the story dragged on quite a bit and I skimmed through some parts until the story picked up.
I again want to than NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC from my favorite writer. I also want to thank Isabel Allende for writing a book that sheds light on a very real and critical situation taking place at our borders.

The Wind Knows My Name
By Isabel Allende

I have read and loved other books by Isabel Allende and was looking forward to read her latest novel. I was not disappointed.
The story starts in 1938 Austria, after the German occupation and the inhumane treatment of Jews. A desperate mother puts her 5 year old son , Samuel on a Kindertransport to England to protect him from the Nazi atrocities. There, Samuel relies on strangers to give him a home.
On the other side of the world, 80 plus years later another desperate mother, Marisol escapes from El Salvador with her 7 year old blind daughter Anita to reach the United States. This is at the time when children were separated from their parents to discourage immigration.
Letitia, another migrant from El Salvador reaches the US in the 1980’s to escape atrocities in that country. The author weaves these three stories together seamlessly in alternating chapters from each protagonists lives. We also meet Selena, a social worker who is working with attorney Frank to reunite Anita with her mother. This was a 4.5 star book for me, gladly rounded to 5. I am taking half a point off for the relationship between Selena and Frank, which I didn’t feel added to the story.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

This is another masterpiece from Isabel Allende.

Monet knew when to stop adding brushstrokes, Mozart knew when to stop adding notes, and Isabel Allende knows when to stop adding words.

I admit, I was not excited about reading one more book set partially during WWII. And then to throw in the Covid pandemic and immigration… But I could not put The Wind Knows My Name down.

The settings are described so clearly they’re easy to visualize. We can picture the characters and get to know them thoroughly. I felt as though I was sitting right next to them, experiencing their lives. I was sorry to reach the last page. I would have been happy to read another hundred or two, and go further into the characters’ futures, but then again, the ending was quite satisfying.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House, and Isabel Allende for an ARC of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, and Isabelle Allende for granting my wish to read an ARC of The Wind Knows My Name. I have loved Isabelle Allende's books right from her first book and jumped at the chance to read her latest. Her skill as a writer and storyteller was clearly evident as she weaved together the stories of Samuel, an orphan from WWII who was sent away on the Kindertransport after Kristallnacht, Anita, a blind refugee experiencing the brutal immigration over America's southern border, and her caseworker Selena. Allende is a master and draws you in with her expert character development and beautiful story of dealing with the trauma of being orphaned as a young child. My only disappointment in this beautiful story is the injection of politics that was completely displaced and took away from this beautiful story. Luckily there were just a couple of Trump hating statements and she never mentioned him by name so I only took one star from my review and didn't give up on the book. Stick to writing and leave American politics out of it.

This book grabbed me by the heart and didn't let go. A very important book for our times, this is a tale of refugees, sharing their tragedies and triumphs across centuries and continents. She has created loveable characters, from an introverted musicians to a passionate social worker, and a fey, gifted girl--and weaves their stories together in a tapestry of humor, empathy and hope.
I can always count on Allende's books to show the power of love and living authentically.

I am so grateful to be granted the ARC for this most compelling book! And I am a big fan of Isabel Allende! This book had many layers and in the end all the pieces come together! And how strong these characters are and what they were able to endure.. And I have to say, how ignorant I was to the immigration issue!
Thank you for this wonderful book!

I must admit the writing style was different for me to get used too. But as the story progressed it became easier.
This story of immigration based on two characters from two different time periods.
One as a young Austrian jew, the other recent boarder cross, their story weave together. Tell a tale of courage, determination, will and hope. A blending a tale of faith, love and how family can be created with open hearts and healing.

This was my both my first Isabel Allende book and first ARC book—yay! I have always meant to read an Isabel Allende book because she is one of my mother’s favorite authors; she’s always said she maybe subconsciously named me after her. I knew that her writing is typically full of magical realism, so that’s what I was expecting. I also knew that the setting was typically in South/ Central America. Imagine my surprise when this novel began in Vienna. This books felt like the adult version of Alan Gatz’s Refugee, and I mean that in the best way possible. It is told through multiple perspectives in different time periods through people becoming refugees throughout modern history. As this is a historical fiction text, I learned a lot. I had no idea the horrors that El Salvador went through in the 1980s. I truly cared for the characters, and they organically weave together. I look forward to reading more of Allende’s works. Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Group, and Isabel Allende for allowing me to thoroughly enjoy this ARC.

This review will be published on Goodreads on January 10, 2022.