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Perla

by Carolina De Robertis (Goodreads Author)

3.92 of 5 stars 3.92 · rating details · 395 ratings · 129 reviews

A coming-of-age story, based on a recent shocking chapter of Argentine history, about a young woman who makes a devastating discovery about her origins with the help of an enigmatic houseguest.

Perla Correa grew up a privileged only child in Buenos Aires, with a cold, polished mother and a straitlaced naval officer father, whose profession she learned early on not to disc...more

Hardcover, 256 pages

Published March 27th 2012 by Knopf (first published March 13th 2012)

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Community Reviews

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Jun 01, 2012 Teresa Lukey rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-top-10, 5-stars, fiction-based-on-fact, i-learned-something, made-me-cry, made-me-feel-good, must-share-with-friends, my-absolute-fav-s, omg, rec-on-fb

Perla is the story of a young woman who has discovered the horrible truth of her existence. Completely caught off guard by the truth of it, she must come to terms with this new knowledge when a mysterious wet man shows up in her living room. This man who has seemingly come from nowhere, with no signs of a break in, cannot talk and only wants water even though he is emaciated.

Right away, the man's presence captivated me. How did he get in to Perla's home? Who is this man? Why does Perla seem to b...more Perla is the story of a young woman who has discovered the horrible truth of her existence. Completely caught off guard by the truth of it, she must come to terms with this new knowledge when a mysterious wet man shows up in her living room. This man who has seemingly come from nowhere, with no signs of a break in, cannot talk and only wants water even though he is emaciated.

Right away, the man's presence captivated me. How did he get in to Perla's home? Who is this man? Why does Perla seem to be unafraid of him? Does this man truly exist? These questions remained in the forefront for me throughout Perla's journey to discover her origins. One thing is absolute, this man is the catalyst she needs for her to seek out the truth of her birth.

We quickly learn that in the late 70's and early 80's a "Dirty War" took place in Argentina. During this time thousands of people were "disappeared", which sometimes included pregnant women. These people were abducted and never seen again, but the infants were often taken and placed with families tied to the military dictatorship in power at the time. Mothers of the disappeared started Madres de Plaza de Mayo in 1977 as a way to drawn attention to the disappeared. In later years, a secondary group that sprung from Madres de Plaza de Mayo, called Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo started using DNA evidence to link people who were taken from their parents during the dirty war.

Perla is seeing a man who has ties to the Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo and encourages her to seek the truth when she starts to believe that she may be a child of the disappeared. He pressures her too much and she decides to abandon the man she loves rather than force herself to evaluate her father's misdeeds, due to the good relationship Perla has with her father. I believe the man who shows up in her home after this incident is a product of her imagination that forces her to seeks the truth as much as it may hurt.

As Perla works to solve this mystery, I found myself agonizing over wanting to know and not wanting to know the truth. This story, although profound, is absolutely beautiful. I find myself tearing up at this moment, from the emotions this novel brought out in me, not because it was sad, rather the sense of release it gave me at its close. As an introduction to the Dirty War that took place in Argentina, this is a sublime pick. I previous had no knowledge of the events that took place in Argentina when I was a young girl and find myself wanting to learn more after ready this truly wonderful piece of literature. WOW! So powerful! Highly recommended to all.(less)

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Jun 22, 2012 Dawn rated it 5 of 5 stars

INCREDIBLY MOVING. When I read the book jacket I was intrigued about the idea of a novel set in Argentina during the time of the "Dirty War" where several thousand people became known as the "disappeared". I was surprised I had never heard about any of this (my world history knowledge is not fabulous) and wanted to learn more. The approach is an unusual one - daughter of career military father left alone in house during vacation meets man who mysteriously appears in her living room dripping wet...more

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Mar 13, 2013 Rosemary Heller rated it 5 of 5 stars

this was one of the best books that i have read in a long time. As a matter of fact, I read it again as soon as I was finished so that I could savor the wonderful, express language. This is not an easy, nor comfortable book to read as it deals with one of the most shameful periods in Argentina's history. During the time of the "dirty war" that was waged on intellectuals and dissidents who were resisting the military junta that was in power during the 70's. Thousands ( it is said to number 30 tho...more

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Oct 09, 2012 Alice Heiserman rated it 4 of 5 stars

Perla, a young woman from Argentina, grew up in a rich military family. Beginning as an adolescent she became conscious of the "disappeared" and was uneasy about the potential role of her parents, who she loved and obeyed, in that tragedy. However, when someone hinted at the problem of the disappeared--those kidnapped and killed--her mother disparaged the people who suggested problems. Her closest friend awakened her to the role of literature and to the issue of her missing uncle and the movemen...more

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Jul 23, 2012 Stacey rated it 5 of 5 stars

This was one of the best books I have read in a long time. The story was disturbing - it is based on the true story of thousands of people who disappeared in Argentina at the hands of the dictatorship during the 1970s and 80s. Some of the scenes describing the torture and killing of these people were heartbreaking, more so when you find out a lot of what is described really happened.

But, the book is so wonderfully written. It is a great story that I couldn't put down. It also gives a sense of ho...more

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Jul 04, 2012 Noralo rated it 2 of 5 stars

Only got about a third through this book before giving up in exasperation. I have no clue what the raves are for. Or rather, I have a lot of clues what the raves are for, but subject matter isn't enough to make a book worthwhile. There's always an interesting story to be told about military oppression in Argentina and the Disappeared, but this book amazingly made it as uninteresting as possible with its heavyhanded narration and 'literary' circumventing. The poetic flourishes of a narrator who w...more

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May 25, 2012 Esther Bradley-detally rated it 5 of 5 stars

I inhaled Perla by Carolina De Robertis, author of The Invisible Mountain, which I have not read.This novel is based on the truth of thirty thousand disappeared Argentinean citizens and five hundred babies who were born in clandestine detention centers and torn from their mothers, to be given up for adoption, a secretive operation.

A hard, hard subject, but so incredibly well written. Some phrases:

"The morning flares open, slowly, filling the air, piercing his mind."

"It was that hour when twili...more

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May 23, 2012 Molly rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone

Recommended to Molly by: TLC Book Tours

Shelves: book-review

Carolina De Robertis has created a fantastic drama of finding oneself, and life during a terrible time. I chose to review this book because of Perla's father.....he was a Navy man, and so was my father, so I love reading books that involve the Navy, for it brings me back to my childhood.

Born in 1981, two years before the "Dirty War" ended, I never really knew of or heard about the Dirty War before now. But, that did not stop me from falling in love with this story. Perla's father was a Navy Off...more

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Mar 14, 2012 Stuart rated it 3 of 5 stars

I'm a guy, a fairly typical guy. I like things that guys tend to like. Baseball. Plain straightforward prose. Stories with big ideas. OK, I deviate from the typical guy likes in that I have a soft spot for opera and musicals. I have, in fact, cried during certain performances of Butterfly and Carmen. But that's not because I have a soft spot for love stories alone; it's because I have a soft spot for love stories set to music. Throw away the music and I'm back in guy mode watching March Madness...more I'm a guy, a fairly typical guy. I like things that guys tend to like. Baseball. Plain straightforward prose. Stories with big ideas. OK, I deviate from the typical guy likes in that I have a soft spot for opera and musicals. I have, in fact, cried during certain performances of Butterfly and Carmen. But that's not because I have a soft spot for love stories alone; it's because I have a soft spot for love stories set to music. Throw away the music and I'm back in guy mode watching March Madness on my TV and fretting over my brackets (I'm very hopeful this year, and yes I'm being a sucker by being hopeful).

Enough background. On to this book. Perla is actually a pretty good novel in terms of construction. It's a step up over a similar book I read recently, Sarah's Key. It's better written. There is a real plot. I thought I might like this book quite a bit because the plot revolves around the stolen children of Argentina's Dirty War. That's a subject of great interest to me because I have relatives from Argentina, many of whom fled to Israel because of the Dirty War. But ultimately this novel isn't about that event. It's about matters of the heart, in particular the matters of a heart of a young Argentinean woman. The prose is florid. The plot is pretty much the over-heightened stuff of opera. An operatic treatment of this story just might be the ticket. But without music, stories like this sag for me. I think it will sag for most guys, opera-lovers or no.

There is an audience for this book, a solid one. I know just the person I'm going to give this book to next: my mother-in-law. Yes, I like my mother-in-law. I'm not trying to torture her, honest. She loves stories like this, solidly written novels with a female narrator dealing with love in its many dimensions. If you're that type of reader, I'm guessing you'll like this book quite a bit. It's not as good as Ann Patchett at her best (I have a soft spot for Bel Canto), but it is less overwrought than books like this from Ann Packer. Perla is an easy four hour read and the prose flows pretty well. (less)

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Dec 30, 2012 Shonna Froebel rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a fascinating novel, set in Argentina, mostly in early 2001. Perla is a young woman studying at university to be a psychologist. She grew up as the only child in a well-off family, and her rather is an officer in the Navy. When she was still in grade school, the abuses perpetrated by the deposed military dictatorship began to come to light, and Perla began to hide her family background. She realized that her parents were part of the group suspect in the crimes committed, but she felt lov...more

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Mar 07, 2012 switterbug (Betsey) rated it 5 of 5 stars

State-sponsored terrorism during Argentina’s Dirty War was employed in order to eradicate political subversives. Although the junta claimed that their repression tactics were aimed at radical guerilla groups, it was actually enforced against the general population. Years later, there is still an unaccounted for number—over 30,000—of “los desaparecidos,” (The Disappeared) the people that were abducted and tortured, or thrown from airplanes into the ocean.

PERLA is the story that takes place after...more State-sponsored terrorism during Argentina’s Dirty War was employed in order to eradicate political subversives. Although the junta claimed that their repression tactics were aimed at radical guerilla groups, it was actually enforced against the general population. Years later, there is still an unaccounted for number—over 30,000—of “los desaparecidos,” (The Disappeared) the people that were abducted and tortured, or thrown from airplanes into the ocean.

PERLA is the story that takes place after the war, of one young woman in Buenos Aires whose father was a Navy officer, and her mother a native Uruguayan from a prominent family. Perla is an intelligent, beautiful young college student, acutely aware that her father supported the deposed military dictatorship. However, her love for her Papa is so strong, and abundant with fond childhood memories, that Perla doesn’t want to face the possibility that her father was a monster.

Perla falls in love with a compassionate, leftwing journalist, who entreats her to look deeper into her family, and investigate her father’s crimes. Conflicted, Perla breaks it off with him and secludes herself, only to be surprised by an astonishing visitor. Conveying the story through magical realism and passionate, undulating prose, De Robertis tells a coming-of-age story of an impassioned young woman standing at the chasm of truth. The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, a human rights organization seeking to find out the fate of los desaparecidos, campaign publicly and daily, also provoking clashing thoughts and fears in Perla’s heart and mind.

This redemption story is intense, powerful, and concentrated. Her themes, like in INVISIBLE MOUNTAIN, are rich in history and evoke questions of home and identity. INVISIBLE MOUNTAIN was a sprawling, multi-generational novel with many characters. This one is more circumscribed, although there are fingers, tentacles that reach across oceans, alert the reader of forced disappearance all over the globe. This is an emotionally potent, surreal, and arresting tale. It edifies but doesn’t preach. I was thoroughly moved by De Robertis’ lyrical, formidable narrative and swept away by Perla’s unforgettable story.(less)

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Mar 02, 2012 Jill rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: all-time-favorites

If Perla was a theatrical production, I’d jump to my feet, applaud and shout “brava!” This visceral reaction – that something very special has just been experienced – is precisely how I felt upon closing the last page of this spellbinding book.

Where do I even begin? Perhaps with the title: Perla is a college-aged young woman whose father, a Navy Officer, was on the wrong side of the heinous Argentina Dirty Wars. During those wars, many innocent people simply disappeared; they were drugged and t...more If Perla was a theatrical production, I’d jump to my feet, applaud and shout “brava!” This visceral reaction – that something very special has just been experienced – is precisely how I felt upon closing the last page of this spellbinding book.

Where do I even begin? Perhaps with the title: Perla is a college-aged young woman whose father, a Navy Officer, was on the wrong side of the heinous Argentina Dirty Wars. During those wars, many innocent people simply disappeared; they were drugged and thrown out of airplanes, never to be seen again. At the book’s beginning, Perla discovers that one of those disp – a ghost, quite literally – has somehow found his way into her home.

There are plot twists to this coupling, surely, but it is not those twists that make this novel stand out. Ms. De Robertis explores something far more vital: what happens when a person we love has been the instrument of pain and suffering? How do we reconcile his heinous acts with the person who loves and nurtures us? What responsibilities do we have to him, to society in general, and most of all, to ourselves? Or, in Perla’s own words, how can one move forward when “the crimes of my father-the crimes of the nation, also, crimes to which I had not given words –settled on me, rode my back drooped my shoulders, stuck to me and refused to wipe away.”

Perla is forced into a delicate dance of trying to understand her father, extricate herself, potentially be his salvation as her father demands “absolution or amnesia or, at the very least, for continued love.” Her inner journey to claim her place in the world – her very identity – leads to birth and a rebirth and connects her with who she is meant to be and who she will become.

In confident prose that reads like elegiac poetry, Ms. De Robertis creates word images that are downright exquisite. I often went back and read lines twice or three times, marveling at their beauty. And when I reached the end, I broke down in sobs, not because of a manufactured sad ending but because the story was so very powerful. I haven’t had that reaction since reading Toni Morrison’s Beloved. This masterpiece tackles all the big parts of life: love, suffering, redemption, identity, the need of belonging, and how we connect to each other. If I could give it 10 stars, I gladly would.
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Apr 08, 2012 Bonnie Brody rated it 5 of 5 stars

Perla is a book to marvel at. The language and writing are magnificent. The narrative and characterizations are sublime. Together, they all work to carry the reader away to another land, another time and submerse us in the world that Carolina di Robertis has created.

Perla is the daughter of a navy officer, a man who participated in The Process, which some people call The Bad Years, during the dictatorship of General Jorge Videla- the dictadura - in Argentina during the 1970's and 1980's. During...more Perla is a book to marvel at. The language and writing are magnificent. The narrative and characterizations are sublime. Together, they all work to carry the reader away to another land, another time and submerse us in the world that Carolina di Robertis has created.

Perla is the daughter of a navy officer, a man who participated in The Process, which some people call The Bad Years, during the dictatorship of General Jorge Videla- the dictadura - in Argentina during the 1970's and 1980's. During The Process over 30,000 people disappeared - on their way to work, from their homes, while walking, etc. - never to be heard from again. They are called The Disappeared - desaparecidos. Once democracy was attained in Argentina, the people who participated in the acts against humanity were all pardoned and they live next door to their neighbors, many of whom have lost loved ones as desaparecidos. Some of those who have lost loved ones march weekly near the capitol building in Buenos Aires, where the novel takes place, with placards that show photographs of their loved ones who disappeared. They are called The Abuelas - the grandmothers.

Perla loves her father and worships him. He sang her songs to help her sleep, was the person she looked up to and revered. How can she believe he was part of The Process as he is her world, the model for her life? Her mother is rather cold, a woman of fashion and impulses who does not truly bond with Perla. There are undertones of violence and secrets in the family, always. Lolo, Perla's beloved turtle, is 35 years old and has a broken jaw from a terrible kick from her grandfather. Because of this broken jaw, Lolo can't eat regular food and Perla is regularly cooking squash for her pet. Her grandfather also beat her father though Perla was never the victim of any physical abuse. "I was spoiled, the one who was not hit, escaping the fate of Hector and Lolo." She senses secrets all through her life and home. Something about her life is amiss and missing. She realizes her father was a navy officer during the dictatorship but she tries to deny the fact that he participated in all the horrors of the time. She can't fully accomplish this. "With every turn and motion and common daily act, the stain occupied more space beneath my skin. It was inescapable. I could no more free myself of it than I could free myself of my own face." She can't find herself and feels lost, looking for the real Perla. It is for this reason that she majors in psychology at the university, hopefully to find herself, though her father expected her to become a physician.

One day a wet and dripping ghost-like man appears in Perla's living room while her parents are away on vacation. He is one of The Disappeared. At first Perla is scared as anyone would be if an intruder appeared in their house. "I was trying to fathom him, the bare essentials of his being; trying to open my thinking, my world, to contain what he claimed to be: one of the disappeared. One of the people who left for work and never arrived, or arrived at work and never came home, or went home and never emerged. People who left holes more gaping than the ordinary dead, because they can't be grieved and buried, forcing their loved ones to carry their perpetual absence as through the absence itself were alive." "There was so much shouting in my mind, about my father, about my mother, doubts and questions I had spent these recent days struggling against with all my desperate strength. And now, with the ghost's arrival, I could not escape the questions, and yet I still couldn't bear to put them into words, even in silence, even inside." However, Perla grows to care for the ghost and they begin a dialogue that brings Perla to her emotional home, one that puts the secrets to rest, and allows her to be her real self.

The novel is beautiful and haunting, filled with pain, violence and angst, along with joy and life. It is magical realism at its very best, so wonderful that it deserves another description, one of its very own. Di Robertis is a writer of wonder, an author who carries the reader away into the world of her words and does not let go until the end of the book. Even then, I still feel caught up in all that she has written. This book is a marvel, one that will live with me forever. If I could rate this book higher than a '5', I would.
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May 14, 2012 Anne rated it 5 of 5 stars

I was really impressed with this book, it brought out so many different emotions in me while I was reading it. I liked Perla from the beginning and Carolina De Robertis does such an amazing job of bringing her to life. Perla is dealing with the fact that her father has done horrible things that she could never forgive him for, yet she still feels love for him. She is torn in so many different ways when a stranger shows up in her home. While taking care of the stranger she begins to make importan...more

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Apr 30, 2012 Cindi rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012

Perla by Carolina De Robertis is why I read books. Mesmerizing, poetic, enthralling, emotionally consuming, and heart breaking, Perla touched my heart, opened my mind and then reminded me of the power of hope and redemption.

Perla is a young woman in Argentina, born during the "Dirty War" in the late 1970's and early 1980's. 30,000 civilians disappeared at the hands of the military regime. Perla's father is just one of the Navy officers granted immunity for the terrible crimes against humanity. P...more

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Jul 10, 2012 Jessica rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

In the late seventies and early eighties, Argentina was ruled by a military junta that came to power in a violent coup. The junta waged what was known as the Dirty War against guerillas and other leftists, leading to the “disappearance” and death of as many as 30,000 people, including pregnant women whose babies were often sent to live with members of the regime. While I knew that Argentina had experienced long bouts of political unrest, thanks to the likes of Evita, I had never heard of the gen...more In the late seventies and early eighties, Argentina was ruled by a military junta that came to power in a violent coup. The junta waged what was known as the Dirty War against guerillas and other leftists, leading to the “disappearance” and death of as many as 30,000 people, including pregnant women whose babies were often sent to live with members of the regime. While I knew that Argentina had experienced long bouts of political unrest, thanks to the likes of Evita, I had never heard of the genocide until I read this book, which tells the story of a daughter of one of the military officers who took part in the junta.

Perla was born as the junta was coming to a close. While she knows that her father took part in activities that are deemed evil by others, she remains ignorant to many of the details and loyal to her family. As a young woman, she becomes romantically involved with a journalist who works to make public the atrocities committed by the junta, to identify the members who are immune to prosecution and to reunite mothers with their abducted children. Gabriel does not learn of Perla’s lineage until a year into their relationship and while it leads to tension, their romance last four more years until just before the start of the book.

After a falling out of sorts with Gabriel, Perla returns to her parents’ home to begin a new semester of graduate study in Buenos Aires. She is startled one night to discover a naked, wet man has broken into her home. He can barely move or speak, and has almost no memory of what has happened to him or how he came to be in her parents’ living room. Perla decides to care for the man, and over time begins to piece together his story and how it ties into her own.

There were times when this book frustrated me. In one of the earliest scenes, Perla discovers the wet man and inexplicably decides to leave him there while she goes to class. The suspension of disbelief this required on my part was pretty steep, but I pressed on. I frequently had to stop to read Wikipedia articles just to understand exactly what Perla’s father had been involved with. Also, can all major publishers come together to agree that they will not publish a book that fails to properly use quotation marks to denote dialogue? That shit drives me up the wall, even when it's used strategically.

Still, I was drawn in by Perla’s story and the issues it explored, namely the notion of Perla’s guilt for atrocities committed by her father that she had no involvement in and very little knowledge of. There's a lot of emotional heft to the story and it's definitely well-written.
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Apr 13, 2012 Ann rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: curious people

Recommended to Ann by: I saw it at the public library.

Life is so complicated. Perla loves her parents, but knows deep down about the charade they are playing. Her father is loving and caring, how could he be involved in such horrible acts? Perla is haunted by this. I know so little about Latin America. This book is an eye opener.

This story is about the Madres de la Plaza de Mayo and their search for the offspring that disappeared between 1876 and 1983. The ruling government of Argentina labled these desaparecidos as insurgents to justify their capt...more

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May 10, 2012 Serena rated it 5 of 5 stars

Perla by Carolina De Robertis (giveaway following the review) is captivating and intoxicating in its setting, mystery, and the psychological unraveling of the main protagonist, Perla. She’s growing into a young woman, but her cloistered existence threatens to explode until she begins to release herself in books and in her relationship with Gabriel.

The past haunts everything around her, though she does not know it at first. She is proud of her family and her father’s naval career and her mother’s...more

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May 02, 2012 Rusty rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction

A young woman named Perlita (Perla) leads a charmed life. Her parents are wealthy and her father is an officer in the Argentine military. What she doesn't know won't be a problem or will it? She falls in love with a man whose passion is writing about the thousands who disappeared in Argentina's bleakest recorded moment who asks if she could have been a child of disappeared parents. "Of course not!" she replies testily but in a small part of her brain a question has been planted.

Yes, Perlita was...more

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May 02, 2013 Ken Brimhall rated it 5 of 5 stars

A Stunning Masterpiece

Brilliant, unique, dreamlike, hallucinatory, Perla is a book like no other. It concerns the truth of thirty thousand disappeared Argentinean citizens and five hundred babies who were born in clandestine detention centers, torn from their mothers, and secretly given up for adoption during Argentina’s Dirty War in the 1970’s. Priests told the military dictatorship it was OK to torture and kill parents because they were subversives and atheists, but not the babies. What makes...more

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Dec 19, 2012 Sara rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012

My second book this year about Argentina's disappeared, and coincidentally, (after Ian MacLeod's Song of Time) featuring an amnesiac stranger washing ashore to unravel a woman's past. While based on truly harrowing subject matter, however, Perla's story didn't have the same power as Roushana's. There were some searing passages, one on a plane in which the horror of what is happening creeps in slowly to unleash itself with startling beauty. Unfortunately, the character is not compelling enough a...more

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Aug 23, 2012 guiltlessreader rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: reads-2012, latin-america, literary-fiction, favourites, historical-fiction, books-won

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Originally posted on my blog Guiltless Reading

A heartbreaking struggle for self-identity.

The book in one sentence: Perla struggles to reconcile her life as she knows it, with what it truly is.

My two cents: This is one of the most powerful pieces I have read in a long, long time!

Some things are impossible for the mind to hold alone. So listen, if you can, with your whole being. The story pushes and demands to be told, here, now, with you so close and the past even closer, breathing at the napes...more

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Jul 20, 2012 Yasmin rated it 3 of 5 stars

The story of a loving father/daughter relationship gone awry. What happens when a stranger visits you and shares information about your father that you never knew...or didn't you? Perla is based on the stories of the Lost/Disappearing people of the 70s as a result of the abuse caused by the then military (dictatorship) rule. I was intially very engaged in the storyline because of the subject matter...it was something different for me...and had the author stayed true to this storyline my rating m...more

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Aug 07, 2012 Christina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: world-challenge

Set in modern day Argentina, Perla receives a visit from an unexpected guest, her hidden past. She is startled to discover a strange man wearing no clothes in her living room. He only requests water, which he chews as if it is a feast. The stranger then secretes large amounts of water with his remembrances.

Perla has lived a relatively privileged life. She is the daughter of a Navy officer and her mother stays at home. However the country has recently undergone some political turmoil. Thousands...more

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Mar 24, 2012 Emma rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: argentina, latin-america, amazon-vine-reviews, 4-stars, contemporary

I enjoyed this book, which tells a compelling story of a young woman in early-21st-century Argentina struggling with the repercussions of the “dirty war” (the military government’s campaign against so-called subversives in the early 70s and late 80s), her father’s participation in it and her own identity.

This is a short book, but its scope is narrow enough that the story it tells is complete. The plot is compelling, and doesn’t depend for suspense on its major secret as I’d thought it might--any...more I enjoyed this book, which tells a compelling story of a young woman in early-21st-century Argentina struggling with the repercussions of the “dirty war” (the military government’s campaign against so-called subversives in the early 70s and late 80s), her father’s participation in it and her own identity.

This is a short book, but its scope is narrow enough that the story it tells is complete. The plot is compelling, and doesn’t depend for suspense on its major secret as I’d thought it might--anyone who knows anything about modern Argentine history is likely to guess the secret after reading the blurb, but the book anticipates that. The focus is really on the title character, how her father’s past has affected her life and relationships, and how her understanding of who she is changes throughout the book--I won’t go into any more detail than that. But there’s a good balance between the internal (a lot of the book’s action is internal) and external events like character interactions, which keep the book from bogging down too much in Perla’s head.

The characters feel authentic, and the dialogue is pitch-perfect--throughout, I could envision real people having these conversations, which is not a common experience for me. Even the minor characters are utterly believable, and De Robertis does a great job of exploring the complexities of the characters’ relationships, particularly among family members. The setting is also well done--I spent about six months in Buenos Aires around the time of the story’s “present day” and the descriptions of the city are much as I remember it. There are some short but brutal scenes from the dirty war, presenting an impressionistic approach to history--more about imagery than hard facts like names and dates.

The novel is certainly well-written, but in some places (generally in the shorter segments from Perla’s guest’s point-of-view) seemed a bit overwritten, with multi-page paragraphs bursting with figurative language. Those who prefer florid prose will appreciate that more than I did. But I do think the book is written in such a way as to appeal both to historical fiction aficionados and lovers of contemporary family stories--although it might sound like the latter, I’m solidly in the former group and thoroughly enjoyed it.

My verdict, then: absolutely a good book, with surprising depth and authenticity. And the ending is perfect. I would have been happy to read more about Perla, which is a good thing, but rarely have I read such an excellent last page.(less)

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Feb 26, 2013 Erica Gees rated it 5 of 5 stars

A powerful tale of a dark moment in history for Argentina. Magical realism is used to tell a tale of birth and re-birth, love and identity. A powerful tale addressing a dark time in Argentina's modern history. This memorable book offers the reader a thoughtful, sensitive development of personal identity and connection to those who have crossed the threshold as victims of a brutal regime. It follows a journey into the mind and the spirit world, of darkness and light.

De Robertis is a poet of the...more

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Jun 21, 2012 Karen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction

Political turmoil in Ethiopa and Afghanistania turned upside down the lives of the protagonists in "Cutting for Stone" and "The Kite Runner." I thought the same thing would happen concerning Argentina in "Perla." Unfortunately, the author did not develop the depth of character or complexity of plot. Nevertheless, de Robertis is a good writer and I did learn a lot about the consequences of The Dirty Wars. The theme of identity just wasn't examined as thoroughly or as subtly to engage me as comple...more

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Jun 28, 2012 Zohar - ManOfLaBook.com rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012

Perla by Carolina De Robertis is a historical fiction book about Argentina’s Dirty War. The author is a daughter to Uruguayan parents, but her grandparents were Argentineans in exile.

Perla, a young woman and a university student, seeks to find answers. The tradition in her family is to not to ask questions, especially about her father’s activities during the time known as Argentina’s Dirty War. As Perla grows up, she separates her family life from her personal life.

One...more Perla by Carolina De Robertis is a historical fiction book about Argentina’s Dirty War. The author is a daughter to Uruguayan parents, but her grandparents were Argentineans in exile.

Perla, a young woman and a university student, seeks to find answers. The tradition in her family is to not to ask questions, especially about her father’s activities during the time known as Argentina’s Dirty War. As Perla grows up, she separates her family life from her personal life.

One day, after Perla arrives home she finds a strange man in her living room. The man is soaked and oozes water all the time, surprising even herself, Perla reacts to this “vision” by giving him food and shelter only to realize that he is one of the “disappeared”, a victim of the Dirty War, and might hold the key to her past.

I very much enjoyed The Invisible Mountain and when I got the email to ask if I’d like to join the tour for Carolina De Robertis’ Perla I jumped at the opportunity. The novel has many aspects one could see it from it is a coming of age story, historical literature and supernatural aspects so prominent in Latin literature.

One thing is for certain, Ms. De Robertis can write, Perla is a beautiful novel about an ugly situation. Even the parts about the horrendous acts the Argentinean government committed against its own people are beautifully written.

“The day the black boots came for him was a pretty day, with bright blue slices of sky between the buildings”.

As in many of the books I read, especially about World War II, I always ponder what makes good people do bad things?
Could it be the herd mentality?
The firm belief that you are actually keeping the country together?
That you are the “good guys” in the story?

This type of questions are a part of the story which the author tackles. Ms. De Robertis tell her tale focusing on the long term affects of the war blending history, fiction, shame, honor and magic in an engrossing yarn. The author offers just enough context within the story to appreciate the history which the story revolves around, while certainly not a definitive historical book, it is not meant to be as such, but simply wets the apatite to read some more.

Perla is an elegant, poetic and deceptively simple book which tells of a young woman coming to grip with her own history at the time Argentina comes to grip with its own past.

For more reviews and bookish posts please visit: http://www.ManOfLaBook.com (less)

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Jul 23, 2012 Diane rated it 2 of 5 stars

This story takes place in Argentina post the dictatorship government. It has to do with the missing thousands taken by that dictatorship. Perla is a priveledged only child of a military father and his wife. She is "visited" by a strange "creature" and eventually puts together that she is one of the stolen babies of one of the missing and was "adopted" by her parents. The concept of this story is strange. I don't want to spoil this for any potential readers, but the strange visitor is a concept I...more

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Mar 26, 2012 Doret rated it 4 of 5 stars

As a little girl growing up in Buenos Aires, Perla never wanted for anything. At a time when Argentina's government used violence to silence the public, Perla's father had a position of power as a naval officer. He was responsible for many of people who "disappeared" during the Dirty War. Perla's parents kept this truth a secret. The novel is set in the present (2001) after Perla receives an unexpected guest. His presence has Perla thinking about her life, her fathers deeds, and remembering a ti...more

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About Carolina De Robertis

Carolina De Robertis is the author of Perla and The Invisible Mountain, which was an international bestseller translated into fifteen languages, the recipient of Italy’s Rhegium Julii Prize, and a Best Book of 2009 according to the San Francisco Chronicle, O, The Oprah Magazine, and BookList. She is the translator of Alejandro Zambra’s Bonsai, which was just made into a feature film, and Roberto A...more

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Quotes from Perla

“No, I wanted to say, he didn't cut off her hands because he didn't have to, he had cut them off long before, with years of keeping all authority in his own palms, all the rules and all the power and all the answers emanating from him and no one else. And if you don't understand that, if you've never been in such a family, then you can't know the way the mind shackles itself and amputates its own limbs so adeptly that you never think to miss them, never think that you had anything so obscene as choice.” — 5 people liked it

“There's that feeling that comes when you read something and the lines speak directly to you, and to you only, even though the person who wrote them died long before you were born, or, even if alive, has no idea you exist. The words seep right into your mind. They pour into your secret hollows and take their shape, a perfect fit, like water. And you are slightly less alone in the universe, because you have been witnessed, because you have been filled, because someone once found words for things within you that you couldn't yourself name – something gesturing not only toward what you are, but what you could become.” — 4 people liked it

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