Why a Booktrail?
Early 20th C – The story of three women set against the backdrop of some of the most dramatic periods of South America history.
The Invisible Mountain
What you need to know before your trail
The dawn of the 20th century heralds a new period of South American history. Che Guevara and Fidel Castro free Cuba, Evita Peron steps onto the world stage, conflicts and revolutions ravage the land and its people.
Against this backdrop, three generations of the Firielli family grow up and deal with their surroundings as best they can.
Pajarita is the mother figure with a monstrous husband. Daughter Eva, enters a world shaken by revolution and flees her home to escape abuse ending up in Buenos Aires. History repeats itself in more ways than one when her daughter, Salomé is born. Salomé has been strengthened by previous generations and seeks to become a guerrilla fighter but idealism soon turns to tragedy.
Travel Guide
The chronological story of three generations of the Firielli family: Pajarita, Eva and Salomé. Each section of the book is seen through the eyes of each women in turn painting a picture of Uruguay and much of South America’s history.
Tacuarembo, Uruguay – Pajarita
Pajarita marries young – a Venetian gondola maker no less, but the marriage is not a happy one for the most part since Ignazio is troubled and starts finding more comfort in the bottle or in a game of cards than his marriage. Eva comes along but the abuse soon starts. The question is whether Ignazio will ever return.
Buenos Aires – Argentina – Eva
Eva’s time in the capital is not a happy one and she finds herself in a difficult situation which is not the escape she had envisioned. Events spiral out of control and mirror events in the country as a while- the war, the lies of war, violence, coercion and feeling of intense isolation – especially for women at the time. This is the Buenos Aires of the Peronist regime and soon she will meet a certain Eduardo ‘Che’ Guevara, who became a famous and iconic figure Argentina’s soul.
Montevideo, Uruguay – Salomé
Salomé is the symbol of the woman who becomes involved with the revolution. The sense of freedom for herself and for other women like her, not to mention her country is the overriding emotion. The violent turmoil of the late 1960s and the urban guerilla rebels are creating a new kind of South AMerica. Working in Montevideo, she becomes part of the Tupamaros.
(Movimiento de Liberación Nacional-Tupamaros)
With Spanish phrases and concepts dotted throughout the novel, the sense of immediacy and authenticity add to the overriding picture of three women living a significant time period of history.
Where Next?
