La hermana

by Paola Kaufmann

Una espléndida novela sobre la vida de Emily Dickinson.



En el siglo XIX vivió en Nueva Inglaterra Emily Dickinson (1830-1886), una escritora tan solitaria como sólo pueden serlo los genios o los locos. Pese a las innumerables interpretaciones su vida fue, y sigue siendo, una suerte de emboscada para los curiosos y de enigma perpetuo para los críticos de su obra. En La hermana, la mirada de Lavinia Dickinson, su hermana menor, nos descubre a Emily en el esplendor y miseria de su una mujer rebelde y excéntrica, con un extraordinario sentido del humor, que fue fabricando su imagen y moldeando un destino a sabiendas de que éste sería imposible de alcanzar en vida. Lavinia, o Vinnie, narra una historia en la que Emily está siempre presente, en la periferia o en la médula de sus recuerdos. Vinnie es testigo y parte, adora a Emily pero también la rechaza, no la comprende pero la protege. Con tristeza, sarcasmo, impiedad, habla de la soledad de ambas como algo elegido. Vinnie Dickinson percibió a la hermana genial desde otro lado, incluso desde la incomprensión. Y fue también, ella misma, la hermana.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction

232 pages, Paperback

First published June 30, 2004

About the author

Paolo Kaufmann was born in Rio Negro, Argentina. In recent years, she combined fiction-writing with a successful career as a biologist and scientific researcher. In 2000 she won the Fondo Nacional de las Artes Prize with her short-story collection, The Devil’s Golf Course, and in 2003 she received the Casa de las Américas Prize for The Sister. Her latest novel, The Lake, won the Planeta Prize for fiction. Paola Kauffman died suddenly, after a short illness, in September 2006.

Reviews

[Hester · Rating 4 out of 5]

I knew very little of Emily Dickinson's biography , save her reclusive nature, so this imagined version of her life , death and posthumous wranglings told from her sister, Lavinia's, viewpoint was intriguing .

Here we have the self enclosed world of domestic Amherst with it's intellectual hierarchy, it's religious conformism, Yankee thriftness and well guarded privacy . Emily flits about the house like a childish sprite baking gingerbread, hands stained with ink and rarely showing her face to visitors .

As well as Dickinson's isolation I was struck by the terrible loneliness of Lavinia as , one after another , all those she loves die leaving her half crazed with grief . No wonder the terrible breach with her brother's lover , Mabel , soured into a vengeful battle focusing on the ownership and publication of the poetry , lasting decades after Dickinson's death .

Paola Kaufmann, a talented Argentinian writer , sadly, also died prematurely. Our loss .

[Pilar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Novela a modo de memorias ficcionadas escritas por Lavinia, Vinni, la hermana de Emily Dickinson. Muy bien narrada, muy bien documentada. Para amantes de la vida y obra de Dickinson creo que es una lectura muy buena. La he disfrutado mucho.

[Carla · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've always loved Emily Dickinson but had never read a novel with her as a "character". What I liked about this was that it was written from the perspective of her sister, Lavinia Dickinson. It explained a lot about Emily's personality quirks. It's also an insight into family relationships, and how we never really know each other even when we're living in close quarters. We may know each other's habits, preferences and moods, but we don't know the internal comings and goings of each others' hearts. The book is written in the first person narrative, and therefore has an old fashioned feel to it. I really enjoyed it. I was sorry to read on the back cover that the author died of cancer at a young age - I would have liked to read other novels by her.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though a bit slow to start, this story gets compelling midway through when Lavinia, the younger sister, discovers her sister's poems after her death. The book doesn't necessarily help you understand what made Emily Dickinson "tick," but it does offer glimpses into events from the Dickinson family's lives that likely inspired recurring themes in her poetry. As for Lavinia, her story is a little sad, a little sweet, and nicely imagined.

[Lisa Muller · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fictionalized biography of the enigmatic and compelling Dickinson family, this time through the imagined voice of the poet's sister Lavinia Dickinson. Again, I felt as if I was walking through the meadows and the streets of Amherst, or whispering down the halls of the Dickinson home. A wonderful book that evokes both the joy and the pain of being part of this amazing family. This gem is also a biography of the poems themselves-- how Lavinia, who could not bear to burn them after her sister's death, did everything in her power to bring the poems to the public.

[Allyson · Rating 1 out of 5]

You know when Avitar won the Golden Globe for best movie? It was confusing. Like, really? No one I know liked that movie. It looked really stupid and James Cameron has obviously lost his mind.

Seeing that The Sister won writing awards was kind of like that. No one I talked to liked this book, and I couldn't get through it. And Paola Kaufmann died, just like I kind of wish James Cameron would do.

[Elena Sánchez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Biografia novelada de Emily Dickinson relatada figuradamente desde el punto de vista de su hermana.
Me pareció muy interesante, revelando detalles de la vida de Emily (no habia leido su biografia al detalle antes) y está narrada poéticamente lo que la convierte en una lectura muy completa.
Me hizo conocer un poco la obra poetica de Emily porque, por desgracia, soy una persona muy poco abierta a la poesia.

[Amanda]

Novela muy interesante que intenta recrear la voz de Lavinia, hermana menor de Emily Dickinson. Intentando dar credibilidad a su personaje mediante documentación de la época y hechos fácticos probados (o probables), lo más interesante de la obra resulta el descubrimiento de una conciencia intranquila y culposa en "Vinnie" y su desandar del presente para reacomodar el pasado que la atormenta.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

©2003

This young Argentinian author thoroughly researched the life of Emily Dickinson and utilized diaries, letters, and poetry to create her story from the perspective of her sister, Lavinia. Very intriguing family story, especially the publication of her poetry, which was initially heavily edited.

[Nathalie Pauwels · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice, but there remains a distance between the characters and the reader.

[Erin O'Riordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't dislike this novel, but I think I would have liked it a little better if it didn't presuppose that the reader has some biographical knowledge of Emily Dickinson. I'm certain I studied Dickinson in AP American Literature in high school, but that was almost 20 years ago, and I'm (understandably) a little fuzzy on the details. In this regard, this is a book written by a scholar for scholars.

It has aspects that non-scholarly readers such as myself can enjoy for their own merits. The prose is dense and often lyrical, a style well-suited to its cryptic subject, a woman who lived and breathed poetry. Telling the story from the perspective of Lavinia Norcross Dickinson, Emily's sister, was fresh and original. It allows Emily Dickinson's mind-blowing poetry to shine through. I would recommend it to anyone who loves Dickinson's poetry, with the caveat that refreshing one's self on the details of the poet's life beforehand might not be a bad idea.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was really good!

Makes me want to run out and read all Emily Dickinson's poetry, plus a biography or two of her. I'd say that's the sign of a good historical fiction novel. I am intrigued by the fact the author was Argentinian, and the book was translated into English. Huh. Not that Argentinians can't be interested in Emily Dickinson, I just find it intriguing : )

[Bzak2 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it - I didn't know much about Emily Dickinson so it was interesting to get a bit of insight into her but at the same time it was hard to follow this story at times as it was not written in a straight forward style

[Beatrice · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't even know why I got this book out of the library because I don't even like Emily Dickinson but it was very interesting and I like her a lot more now, as well as her sister whose diary this is supposed to be.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

For afficiandos, I'd guess.

[Mary · Rating 1 out of 5]

This one was sitting next to another one that I was checking out and it looked interesting, but wasn't.

[Miss Leticia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely novel about Emily Dickinson, written from the perspective of her sister Lavinia.