The House of Spirits is a thrilling novel in which Isabelle Allende described the life of del Valle and Trueba families in one of the neighborhoods of Chile’s capital and Tres Marias village post the colonial era. This fantasy underlined the clashes between the capitalist, socialist, and military/dictatorship governments that ruled the country in 1910s-1970s, the fight for workers’ rights, and the fear of communism, as well as highlighted the power of love in holding the family together, spiced with magic and clairvoyance.
The poor Esteban Trueba was engaged to the rich Rosa del Valle. He worked in the gold mines to become rich and feel worthy of Rosa, who was very beautiful with green hair and yellow eyes. Unfortunately, Rosa died after consuming poisoned wine, which was meant to kill her father as he was involved in politics. This devastated the family in which her dad quit politics, and her fiancé left the mines. Clara the clairvoyant, who had magical powers such as moving things by just looking at them, became mute after witnessing Rosa’s autopsy in their kitchen and spent her time knitting and reading the magical books of Uncle Marcos.
Esteban took the few pieces of gold he found, said goodbye to his sister Férula and ailing mother, and went to the country where he rebuilt Tres Marias from the rebels, and appointed Pedro Segundo Gracia as his foreman. To get over the nightmares of Rosa, Esteban raped every girl and young woman in Tres Marias, having many illegitimate children. His first victim was Pancha Garcia, the sister of Pedro Segundo Gracia – Esteban foreman. He invited her to into his house where they intercourse every night, until she got pregnant and got bored with her.
Esteban became a famous rich patron and sent money and food to his sister. When his mother died, he decided to marry Clara who predicted her engagement to her family. Hearing her talking surprised the family since she hasn’t spoken a word for about a decade. Esteban loved Clara dearly, yet she didn’t feel the same because of being spiritualistic.
The couple lived in Esteban’s family’s house with Férula, who loved Clara and looked after her. Later, Clara had Blanca who was not beautiful at birth. But Clara’s love, breastfeeding, and sweet talking changed her baby into a beautiful girl. Férula was so happy with her niece and looked after her and Clara, who became Férula’s best friend. Esteban kept going back and forth between the capital and Tres Marias, sending them crates of his products - fresh fruits, vegetables, meat ….
Férula and Clara took Blanca and visited Tres Marias from time to time, where Blanca spent her childhood playing with Pedro Tercero Gracia (the son of Pedro Segundo Gracia). The young kids grew into lovers and spent their teenagerhood together, making love at night near the river of Tres Marias after Blanca sneaked form her window. Pedro also wrote songs to Blanca and about hens’ ability to fight the fox and win – resembling workers ability to obtain their rights if they unite. He also distributed pamphlets supporting Marxism and communism, encouraging farmers to fight for their rights, which infuriated Esteban. On the other hand, Clara got pregnant and had twin boys, Jaime and Nicolás. Férula kept taking care of Clara which made Esteban jealous to a degree that he kicked his sister out after giving her money!
One day, Jean de Satigny, a French count, visited Tres Marias and tried to do business with Esteban Trueba by building a chinchilla farm and sell their leather. The count also asked Esteban to marry Blanca who agreed but told him that he needed to ask his daughter. Yet, Blanca fought with her dad refusing to marry him.
Things went peacefully for a short time, until the count saw Blanca sneaking form her window and followed her. He saw her with Pedro which angered him! So he ran her dad to reveal what he just witnessed! Furiously, Esteban stormed out of his house galloping on his horse. When he saw his daughter walking, he grabbed and whipped her, who was only saved by her mom! Yet Clara received a blow from her furious husband causing her to fall and lose her front teeth. This shocked Esteban making him feel sorry. He tried to sooth his wife, but Clara didn’t respond and walked out. The count, however, took his things from Esteban’s house and went to the hotel.
The next day, Clara and Blanca returned to the city, whereas Esteban announced a prize for anyone who would tell on Pedro Tercero Gracia! The 6-year-old Esteban Garcia (the grandson of Pancha Garcia) guided Esteban Trueba to where Pedro was. The former tried to shoot Pedro but failed so he threw an axe at him, resulting in cutting Pedro’s three fingers before running away. Then Esteban Garcia asked for his prize, but Esteban Trueba told him that a snitch deserved nothing. This increased the hatred in Esteban Garcia’s heart that was fed by his grandmother’s story about his origin – being the illegitimate grandson of Esteban Trueba.
Blanca became pregnant and her father forced her to marry count Jean, after promising the latter with a rich dowry. The count had nothing with Blanca, and they never consummated their marriage, which relieved Blanca. But she discovered that he was an extrinsic person. He probably was gay and had in his locked room images of their servants posing naked in seductive ways. This scared Blanca and ran out to the train station, where she took the train and went to her parents’ house in the capital. Upon arriving, Blanca gave birth to a beautiful baby named Alba, who inherited Rosa’s green hair. Esteban loved his granddaughter who carried the last name de Satigny but kept his distance from his daughter. They never got along for about 20 years!
In addition to joining her mom on some of the socialist charitable trips, where they provided the poor with food and clothes, Blanca took on her own running the house. This is because her father became a Senator of the Republic, and Clara continued her clairvoyance and inviting spiritualistic people including Amanda (who brought her young brother Miguel with her).
Jaime became a doctor who treated the poor for free. Nicolás however tried to learn magic like his mom but couldn’t because he had to be born with it and not learn it. He became a socialist living on scraps of food and believer in God. He went on a pilgrimage to India and lived as a monk. After his return, he wrote a book about God and his 90 names. He also had many followers who used to meet in his parents’ house. But Esteban was fed up with his son’s craziness and kicked him out.
During this time, Nicolás befriended Amanda who got pregnant. They asked Jaime to help in having an abortion, who was very angry with his brother esp. that he loved Amanda. After the abortion, Amanda stayed in their house and was taken care of by Clara. Then Amanda left for good after seeing how Jaime looked at her, fearing of hurting the brothers.
Esteban reached his limits with Nicolás after he took off his clothes in the middle of the street in front of the Congress and laid down with his followers, asking the government to give people their rights. So his dad gave him money and put on him on a flight to the US, where he became rich!
Blanca met Pedro Tercero Gracia after several years, who stopped singing and became part of the socialist party in the country, after the democratic party won the elections. They used to make love in his shabby apartment. He also met his daughter Alba, without telling her that he was her real dad. Pedro asked Blanca to marry him quiet few times, but she kept saying that she needed time to think, until he got angry and refused to see her.
At Alba’s 7th birthday, Clara sensed that she would die and so wrote letters to each member of her family saying goodbye. Her death broke Esteban who made a huge ceremony for her, to which many people of all classes attended her funeral. Esteban asked Del Valle to extort Rosa’s body and bury it beside her sister, but they refused. So he asked Jaime to help him steal Rosa’s body and move it inside the shrine he built for the 2 loves of his life!
Alba inherited her grandma’s spiritualism and clairvoyance. At the university, she met Miguel. They loved each other and joined his socialist movement that was organized in the university. they even took over a building asking the government to give the workers their rights!
During the short period of the democratic rule, food became scarce and expensive. So Blanca started hiding food whenever she bought it, and her dad bought and hid ammunition in one of the house rooms. Alba however felt the need to feed the hungry and refused killing others, so she made an opening in the wall to the food store as well as to where the guns were hidden. She stole food and gave it to Miguel who in turn offered it to the poor. And her uncle Jaime helped her to take some of the ammunition out, placed them in the car, and buried them in the mountains.
Esteban Trueba hated the democratic era because his workers took over Tres Marias and held him hostage. He was only saved by Pedro Tercero Gracia after Blanka asked for his help. So eventually he was convinced that the only way to get over communism is by a military coup and not be controlling the market and holding food supplies from people!
Unfortunately, the presidential palace was attacked form the air by international planes (believed to be American) and the military attacked it on foot and shot many people including the presidents, despite saying that he committed suicide. The senators, employees, and visitors (including Jaime who was a friend of the president and used to play chess with him) of the democratic government were placed on the ground and ordered a tank to roll them over or were tortured and shot.
Esteban refused to believe that the military killed his son, but he accepted it when a soldier, whose mom Jaime treated, told Blanca what happened! This devastated Esteban and the whole family, and Blanca asked her dad to help her take The Wanted Pedro Tercero out of the country! Her dad agreed this time because he felt that this man and his daughter cannot be separated. So, Esteban asked the help of the Nordic ambassador who came in his limousine and took them to the Papal Nuncio, where Blanca and Pedro said goodbye to Esteban and Alba and flew to Canada. They lived happily after Esteban gave them money, and Blanca continued to make and sell crèches.
On the other side of the story, Alba told Miguel about the ammunition she hid with her uncle. So they the orphans on a trip to the mountains and extracted the goods. Alba also saved Jaime’s car and used it to drop socialists at embassies to ask for asylum. Tragically, one day the secret police attacked Esteban’s house, burned all the books they found in his library including Uncle Marcos’ books and the ones they found in Jaime’s and Nicolás rooms, and dragged Alba out saying that she was the whore of the socialist party. This shocked Esteban who tried to defend her saying that he was a senator and a friend of General Hurtado, but they shut him off and left.
Alba was blindfolded and taken to the woods where she was tortured by being hit savagely, watched while relieving herself, raped, and electrified while being naked. And all this was done by colonel Esteban Garcia, who joined the police force years ago by a recommendation letter from Esteban Trueba. Upon connecting the dots, Blanca understood that this was Esteban Garcia’s way in avenging his grandma and himself!
In the meantime, Esteban Trueba asked the help of General Hurtado but got no avail. So, he joined forces with Miguel who advised him to see his old friend Transito Soto. She was a whore who Esteban knew long time ago (since Rosa’s death) and gave her money to have her own brothel. Through her work, she knew all important people in the country. So, she paid back her debt by bringing Alba back to her grandpa - the only person left of his family! Alba cleaned and rearranged the house with her grandfather and wrote their story from the notebooks of Clara that were hidden and not ruined by the police attack. Esteban died peacefully in his bed while dreaming of Clara, with his granddaughter to his side.
This book described the life of Chileans, and the beauty of Santiago and Tres Marias, and how these places were developed over the years, such as having paved roads, automobiles, and the spread of railways. It also illustrated the destruction that happened after a deadly earthquake hit Chile that killed at least 10,000 individuals in 1960s. Moreover, it highlighted the power of love in holding the family together, that was spiced by spiritualism, magic, and clairvoyance. The author also mentioned the Poet, pointing at Pablo Neruda – the political writer whose poems celebrated the struggle of the underprivileged and workers.
Allende underlined the different governments that ruled Chile between 1910s and 1970 including capitalists, socialist, and military/dictatorship governments, and the fear of communism. She also portrayed the savage treatment of socialists, communists, or democrats by the military, censoring freedom of speech, and the resistance of residents against governments and dictatorships fighting for workers and women’s rights!
The novel depicted the life of the rich vs. the poor and the role of socialism in assisting the deprived. Yet, the story stressed on how villagers spent the money on getting drunk leaving their wives and children hungry, which is why Esteban Trueba used to pay his workers with food coupons instead of real money. These 2 aspects were seen in the different views of Esteban vs Clara and Jaime who believed that people wanted justice. Esteban once told her “Justice! Is it just for everyone to have the same amount? The lazy the same as those who work? The foolish the same as the intelligent? Even animals don’t live like that! It’s not a matter of rich and poor, it’s a matter of strong and weak. I agree that we should all have the same opportunities, but those people don’t even try. It’s very easy to stretch out your hand and beg for alms! But I believe in effort and reward. Thanks to that, I’ve been able to achieve what I’ve achieved.”
Whereas Jaime said to his dad “Helping one’s neighbor is a value that exists.”, who in turn answered, “No. Charity, like Socialism, is an invention of the weak to exploit the strong and bring them to their knees.” …. That’s the way it is in nature. We live in a jungle.” So Jaime replied “Yes, because the people who make up the rules think like you! But it won’t always be that way.”
My favorite quotes are:
Esteban Trueba to Férula “Land is something one should never sell. It’s the only thing that’s left when everything else is gone”.
Clara to Blanca “But it doesn’t help the poor. They don’t need charity; they need justice.”
Narrator “For Jaime, who would not have been the least disturbed by the priestly vows of humility, poverty, and chastity, religion was the cause of half the world’s misfortunes, …. He felt that Christianity, like almost all forms of superstition, made men weaker and more resigned, and that the point was not to await some reward in the sky but to fight for one’s rights on earth.”
Clara’s advice to Blanca “… there was no reason to fear the dead, only the living, because, despite their bad reputation, there was no evidence that mummies had ever attacked anyone; if anything, they were naturally timid.”
Esteban to his colleagues in the congress “Marxism did not stand a chance in Latin America because it did not allow for the magical side of things. Bread, circuses, and something to worship are all they need.”
Clara wrote in her diary “… memory is fragile and the space of a single life is brief, passing so quickly that we never get a chance to see the relationship between events; we cannot gauge the consequences of our acts, and we believe in the fiction of past, present, and future, but it may also be true that everything happens simultaneously...”
Pablo Neruda poem:
How much does a man live, after all?
Does he live a thousand days, or one only?
For a week, or for several centuries?
How long does a man spend dying?
What does it mean to say “for ever”?
.png?etag=%222248-640291c9%22&sourceContentType=image%2Fpng&ignoreAspectRatio&resize=776%2B156)
I usually don’t read books like this, but the coincidence brought a copy of Angels and Demons into my hands. Dan Brown captivatingly described the battle between good and evil depicted in Robert and Vittoria vs. the Illuminati and Camerlengo Carlo Ventresca of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. This is a book of revenge, jumping to assumptions that turn into decisions of catastrophic outcomes, hunting for the truth, religious healing vs. medical healing, faith in God, penance, and redemption.
Kohler, manager of CERN Research Institute, found Vetra (one of his researchers) murdered with one eye plucked from his face and the word “Illuminati” burnt on his chest. So Kohler called Robert, the Harvard professor of religious iconology, asking for his assistance to find Vetra’s killer. Unfortunately, they discovered that the killer stole a capsule holding the antimatter, which the deceased used to work on with his daughter Vittoria. The bomb was hidden in St. Peter’s Basilica and would explode within less than 24 hours.
At first, Robert refused to help and only agreed after seeing the icon on Vetra’s chest. He got on CERN’s fast private jet and flew to Geneva, where he met Kohler and Vittoria. But Kohler couldn’t join them due to suffering a seizure. He was in a wheelchair because when he was a child, his parents (who were strict German Christians) refused medical treatment and believed in prayer’s power. That’s why he hated religion and only believed in the power of science.
In the Vatican, Cardinal Mortati was gathering with all the priests and cardinals in the Basilica to vote to choose the future Pope. In the papal office, the head of the Vatican security force Olivetti rejected the idea that the enemy is the Illuminati until the Camerlengo’s office received a call from an Arabic man. The man said that the Illuminati got the 4 cardinals of whom the new pop would be chosen. One of these preferiti would be tortured and murdered every hour till midnight, at which the antimatter capsule would destroy Vatican Cit ty. All this to avenge the scientists that were persecuted, tortured, and murdered by the church since 1600s.
So the security split into looking for the antimatter bomb and keeping the gathered priests safe inside the Basilica. The Camerlengo also allowed Robert and Vittoria to access the Vatican library to help in finding the kidnapped cardinals before being murdered. Robert and Vittoria spent a lot of time trying to find Galileo section, who was an Illuminati, which could guide them where to look for. They found a poem by John Milton that was like a riddle, which they believed would guide them to the secret meeting place of the Illuminati, and where they might find the preferiti:
“From Santi's earthly tomb with demon's hole,
'cross Rome the mystic elements unfold.
The path of light is laid, the sacred test,
let angels guide you on your lofty quest.”
At first, they thought the first spot would be the Pantheon, but it wasn’t! Yet about 7 minutes before the clock ticked 8:00, Robert discovered that they should follow the Illuminati/Masons’ elements/symbols of power: Earth, Air, Fire, And Water, and that they should find the works of Bernini – another Illuminati. Hence, the first location was Chigi Chapel Santa Maria del Popolo, where they found the 1st cardinal dead from torture, his lower part buried in the basement of the chapel, and the word EARTH burnt on his chest. Olivetti officers got the cardinal’s body out of the chapel after wrapping it to hide it from onlookers. Yet, a couple of BBC reporters captured this after receiving a call about a murdered cardinal in Chigi Chapel.
Robert, Vittoria, Olivetti and his men followed the direction of the angel located in Chigi Chapel to guide him to the 2nd location, which took them about 50 minutes. They found the cardinal murdered (by wounding his chest and puncturing his lungs) on the stairs of the Church of St Agnes in Agony with the word AIR burnt on his chest. This depressed the whole team, but Robert didn’t give up. He followed the guidance of the angel of this church and reached the Church of Santa Maria della Vittoria where they found the 3rd cardinal hanging from the ceiling with the word FIRE burnt on his chest. He was still alive, but the killer set the church on fire and was able to attack Olivetti and Vittoria, killing the first and abducting the latter.
Robert was very angry and tried finding the last location which was the Piazza Navona. He tried to liberate the 4th cardinal whose chest was burning with the word WATER, and was strapped by chains fighting for his life. Robert tried to help the cardinal from drowning, but he was attacked by the killer. They fought fiercely and eventually Robert mimicked being dead by breathing through the bubble pumps of the fountain. So the killer left him.
Robert got out of the fountain and found the cardinal dead. He then tried to locate Vittoria by returning to the Basilica and asked to get back into the library, which the Camerlengo allowed. Robert understood that Vittoria would be in Castel Sant Angelo, the Illuminati lair. He got there but couldn’t enter until he got some help from a reporter by jumping over his van. With difficulty, he found the entrance and reached the room where the killer had Vittoria. The 2 men fought badly until the killer pushed Robert over the castle’s balcony but was helped by Vittoria, who shot the killer and pulled Robert up. Then the 2 of them walked through the secret passage to the Pope’s private library in the Vatican, which is different from the Vatican library.
Kohler had a private meeting with the Camerlengo. The latter burnt the 4 nature elements in a diamond shape on his chest, while Kohler tried to shoot him. At this moment the head of officers got into the room and killed Kohler. Everybody thought that Kohler was the head of the Illuminati! While dying, Kohler gave Robert a web cam that recorded his conversation with the Camerlengo.
After over 4 hours of search, the Vatican officers couldn’t locate the bomb. The Camerlengo on the other hand, ordered to get all the priests and cardinals out of the Basilica. Then he told the officers, Robert and Vittoria that he got a sign from God where the bomb was! He walked them back inside the Basilica stating that it was under Peter’s rock.
The Camerlengo took out the bomb (antimatter capsule) and got into the chopper (as he served in the army and became a chopper pilot). Robert jumped beside him thinking that they will go up high and threw the bomb, but it turned out that Camerlengo put on a parachute bag and jumped out of the chopper leaving Robert with the bomb. After understanding the shocking truth, Robert jumped out while holding to the chopper’s windshield cover. The chopper exploded while he was flying down! He landed into Tiber River.
Robert found himself in the hospital as he was saved by the onlookers who heard the news on BBC about the 4 murderers, and joined the priests, cardinals, and Vittoria in St. Peter’s Square gazing at the sky. The nurses gave him his belongings which included the small webcam that Kohler gave to him and watched the video – Kohler faced the Camerlengo that based on the diary of Vittoria’s dad, Vetra has confided in the Pope about the antimatter and that it proves that the biblical creation story was correct. The Pope loved it and sent the Camerlengo to have a look at it. Yet the latter wasn’t as excited because the antimatter could be used as a weapon and kill people – the same way his mom was murdered in church bombing. So he poisoned the Pope, who actually adopted him when he was a kid. Seeing this, Robert left the hospital and ran to the square.
In the meantime, the Camerlengo landed on top of St. Peter’s Basilica, making many people believe in miracles as they didn’t know that he tricked them. They thought he was saved by God.
In the square, Robert met Vittoria and told her what happened. So they asked Cardinal Mortati to gather all the priests and cardinals and follow them inside the Basilica. They closed the doors after which Robert showed them the video in the presence of the Camerlengo. The latter said that he did all this because the Pope (who adopted him) was a sinner as he fathered a son. He also added that he sacrificed the 4 cardinals to make Christians worldwide believe in miracles again. The people’s fear made them gather around the Vatican to pray, as the Camerlengo said to Mortati, Vittoria, Robert, and all clergymen ‘Nothing unites hearts like the presence of evil. Burn a church and the community rises up, holding hands, singing hymns of defiance as they rebuild.’
At this moment, Cardinal Mortati told the Camerlengo the truth about the Pope. The late Pope loved a nun (Maria) who loved him back. So they made a baby via artificial insemination and without breaking the celibacy vow, which is why the deceased Pope valued and supported science! After giving birth, Maria left the convent to raise her son. But after her death, the Pope, who was still a priest then, adopted the Camerlengo. He wanted to stay close to his son!
The truth shocked the Camerlengo who ran away to the top of the papacy balcony after soaking his robe in sacred scented oils. then lowered his head and started praying. Then he lit the edge of his robe causing himself to go on fire. He looked like an angel ascending to God in flames! He died trying to redeem himself without wrecking the Christian faith (because people would have lost faith in Christianity and its priests if they knew that he did all this and not the Illuminati).
The next day, Cardinal Mortati was voted to be the next Pope and sent Robert a letter asking him and Vittoria to keep the secrecy of what happened.
This epic described why the church believed that science undermined God’s work. It is because science explained many of the miracles or punishments such as the Creation (vs. evolution) and when it rained blood and frogs in Egypt during Pharaoh’s time (i.e., the Plagues of Egypt). Interestingly, the author mentioned that the Vatican City worth 48.5 billion dollars of rare paintings, sculptures, jewels, and priceless books hidden in its library.
The book also highlighted the history of Illuminati who were harbored by the Masons in 1700. They were the rich scientific people who didn’t believe in God’s power. In addition to Galileo and Bernini, they included Cecil Rhodes, George Washington, Ben Franklin, and Henry Wallace (the VP of Roosevelt and the designer of the Great Seal of the president). Moreover, the back of the US dollar has many Masonry symbols: the pyramid (ultimate source of illumination/ knowledge), trinacria (eye inside a triangle which the Illuminati also call the shining delta – it is a symbol of change and transition), and “Novus Ordo Seclorum” is written under the pyramid that means New Secular Order, which contradicts the American slogan ‘In God We Trust’. In fact, the symbols of the Illuminati include pyramids, planets, stars, and ellipses.
This story was a mix of emotions of hatred and revenge as seen in the Camerlengo’s actions which only resulted from jumping to assumptions that turned into catastrophic decisions, who eventually tried to redeem himself by imposing penance. There was also the sacrifice and enthusiasm of Robert and Vittoria to hunt for the truth and save the innocent people. Finally, the battle of science with religion and faith is beautifully portrayed in the following quotes:
My favorite quotes are:
Vittoria to Robert ‘Science tells me God must exist. My mind tells me I will never understand God. And my heart tells me I am not meant to.’
The Camerlengo to Olivetti about the threat of the antimatter ‘His Holiness once told me that a Pope is a man torn between two worlds … the real world and the divine. He warned that any church that ignored reality would not survive to enjoy the divine. … The real world is upon us tonight. We would be vain to ignore it. Pride and precedent cannot overshadow reason.’
The prayer of St. Francis ‘God, grant me strength to accept those things I cannot change’.
Robert’s colleague, Radcliffe to a student ‘Terrorism is a political weapon. Remove a governments’ façade of infallibility, and you remove its people’s faith’.
BBC photographer memories ‘When you’re a Black woman, her mother said, ain’t no hiding what you are. Day you try, is the day you die. Stand tall, smile bright, and let ’em wonder what secret’s making you laugh’.
BBC reporter to the photographer ‘Better to have something in the can before we admit we abandoned conclave’.
The Camerlengo to Vittoria ‘Science can heal, or science can kill. It depends on the soul of the man using the science. It is the soul that interest me.’
Lieutenant Chartrand to the Camerlengo ‘Pain is part of growing up. It’s how we learn.’
Mortati to his comrade ‘Our minds sometimes see what our hearts wish were true.’
The outcast for Inaam Kachachi –an Iraqi journalist and writer– النبيذة لإنعام كجه جي is based on true events. This story describes the life in Iraq during 2 eras: the Hashemites ruling and their massacre (1945-1958), and Saddam Hussein dictatorship, the Iranian-Iraqi War, Gulf War, and the American invasion (1980-2011). It is the story of the venturous life of Taj El-Mulouk (the crown of kings) who was the first Iraqi woman to establish a magazine, Wediyan (valleys) the violinist who Odai Saddam abused her making her deaf, and their connection with Mansour, the Palestinian announcer in Karachi Radio and Chavez advisor in Venezuela.
Taj El-Mulouk was an Iranian who lived with her mom and stepdad in Baghdad, who taught her Arabic, and Arabic poets and poems. She also knew Persian, Kurdish, Turkish, Assyrian, English, and French. Her stepdad tried to force her to not go to school and to be covered in the black Iraqi veil, but she challenged him and finished high school. She was a lively beautiful attractive woman that made her mom worry about her husband, who posed naked to Taj. So she stayed with her mom’s friend, whose married brother liked Taj; this made her move out to an apartment for herself.
Taj lived during the Monarchy and worked as a correspondence for Al-Nida’ magazine. Then with the help of Prince Abd Al-Ilah (the regent on the throne), she founded her magazine Al-Rihab (the wide place) at the age of 24 in August 1946, which was printed in Al-Zaman press. Al-Rihab was also the name of King Faisal’s (the cousin of late king Hussein of Jordan –mentioned in a previous– Nov 2021) palace. Despite her happiness, Taj’s mom wasn’t happy for her and believed that the prince won’t do such thing unless Taj gave him something (or herself) in return!
The magazine was a success despite the attack she received from many people because many of its articles supported the monarchy. Taj on the other hand, had relations with many people including the prime minister Nuri Pasha, and politicians, artists, writers, communists, revolutionaries, and these who supported the Hashemites. The head of intelligence services Bahjat Al-Atiyeh asked her to spy for him on those who worked against the government, but she refused! Yet her life changed when Iraq signed the Portsmouth treaty with England in winter 1948. The treaty meant England kept controlling Iraq foreign and military affairs, in addition to keeping a joint defense board financed by Iraq. This resulted in demonstrations that was greater than the 1920 revolution against British colonialism. In response, the prime minister responded with force, and the Iraqi army killed dozens of its own citizens.
Consequently, a huge march occurred in the country in which Taj took part. The demonstrators put her on their shoulders to show the government that even their friends do not support the force used against Iraqis. After that, her magazine closed because many writers boycotted her magazine, reducing her selling rate. So she returned to work in Al-Nida’ magazine.
On one winter day of 1949, the Pakistani ambassador liked her and asked her to join the team of Karachi Radio. In Karachi, she met Mansour whom she loved but was younger than her by 6 or 7 years, so she decided to not give him hope despite spending many nights together in clubs and restaurants. Mansour however, loved her but was shy to tell her his feelings. Unfortunately, their chief rudely flirted with Taj but she rejected him. As a result, the chief wrote false accusations about her to the management, resulting in firing her in 1950. Mansour defended her but he too was fired with his other colleagues from Egypt and Palestine.
On her departure day, Mansour took a photo of Taj while she was leaning on the ship’s rail. Looking through the camera made it easier for him to not let Taj see his teary eyes. He went to Caracas where he continued his studies and became in academic in Caracas University. He wrote a few books about Arabs’ revolution against injustice and occupation, which Chavez read when he was in prison, and about Bolivar. Mansour married a Columbian after divorcing his Argentinian wife and had 2 girls from each wife. He also was appointed Chavez’s advisor, and through his travels he tried to see Taj in Paris the 1990s.
Taj went to Khorramshahr in Iran to spend some time with her relative. There she met a prince who was from the Sultan Fateh Shah dynasty, the rulers of Iran before being overthrown by Shah Pahlavi. He was the first man to sleep with, causing her to get pregnant. He suggested to marry her in secret, but she refused. So he sent her money and arranged for her departure to Paris.
In Paris, she gave birth to a baby girl and met the French General Champion. The General was ordered to marry her, after which they had a baby boy against his will on 14/7/1958. But Taj never celebrated her son’s birthday because it was the day of the massacre of the Iraqi royal family. He used her for espionage and even asked her to identify Ahmad ben Bella, the soldier who fought with the French against the Nazis, after which he returned to alegria and lead a revolution against the French occupiers. Yet she decided not to help them because Ben Bella is an Arab and closer to her than the French people. To her, he was a patriot but to the French he was a terrorist.
Forty years later, Taj met Wediyan in the hospital where they used to be treated. They became like a mother and daughter. In contrast to Wediyan, Taj told her story (and about Mansour) to Wediyan to whom she left her boxes of press reports, letters, and photos. She had photos with prince Abd Al-Ilah, and king Abdullah the first of Jordan. Taj also started reciting Quran and recorded a CD in her melodious voice.
By coincidence, Wediyan met Mansour, and arranged for him to meet Taj. But Taj ran away due to being afraid that Mansour won’t like what he’d see since she has aged. This upset Mansour who thought that Taj didn’t know that he would see her with his heart not his eyes! One day, Taj contacted him by phone which is followed by exchanging letters, and they agreed to meet. So Mansour visited Paris during the Arab spring in 2011, when he was almost 90. But again, Taj ran away from him, and he returned to Caracas empty-handed.
Wediyan’s childhood was intense as she grew up during the 8-year Iranian-Iraqi War in 1980. She described the fear felt upon hearing the air force, and how most homes in their neighborhood lost sons or husbands. Her college and adult years were during the Gulf War in 1990 that is followed by the American invasion of Iraq in 2003 that lasted to 2011. The American army destroyed Iraq, killed many of its citizens, stole its resources and artifacts, and left it more torn than united. But she used to run away from all this to her violin. She was in the national orchestra who used to play in many concerts that were attended by consulates and ambassadors.
Yet, Wediyan suffered a lot from Odai (Saddam’s eldest son who survived an assassination attempt that left him in a wheelchair). Her fiancé (Yousef) was Odai’s colleague in school and so he (unwillingly) had to attend whenever he was summoned. Odai used to invite people to the stables or the club and leave them wait in the dead heat of the summer from 4 o’clock till midnight. Then he used to ask them to dance and/or join him in drinking or hunting.
One day Odai invited (and no one dared to not attend) many college students and members of the orchestra to a masquerade. The disguise was to look like a handicap, in which some attendees had cut a limb. They had to do this, otherwise they would be tortured to death. Wediyan acted as if deaf but had bad acting. So Odai pulled her into his lap and spit alcohol in her ears, saying that now you may look like deaf. She got out of his crotch terrified and ran to Hisham, Odai’s assistant and Yousef’s friend, who helped her out.
Another time Odai invited young men and women to a party. While they were dancing, he started shooting randomly from the platform, enjoying watching them running away frightened like a flock of pigeons when attacked. At some point, he forced Wediyan into a room where Hisham pushed her down to kneel, grabbing her hands behind her back and tying them, and placing headphones on her ears. Odai ordered to play Metallica at the highest volume. This made Wediyan writhe, which angered Odai causing him to order Hisham to unplug Wediyan’s ears and enter a metal skewer in her ears. This was too painful for Wediyan, causing her to faint.
She woke up at home in her bed and saw her mom weeping but without being able to hear what she was saying. She was deaf! Sadly, her dad was dead at the time, and her brothers treated her as if she was raped! They blamed her for what happened; it wounded their honor! Her fiancé too broke up with her for the same reason, despite that what happened to her was due to being his fiancé – the girl of Odai’s friend! This broke Wediyan esp. that she couldn’t play violin because of losing her hearing ability.
Luckily, one day Wediyan was invited to a gathering where she met the French attaché and his wife. She left a note in the hand of the attaché’s wife about what happened to her. They sent her with a group of musicians to Paris and arranged for her treatment. She met a few otolaryngologists and underwent a surgery that improved her hearing with the help of hearing aid. They also provided her with a job – teaching violin to poor children. In Paris, some acquaintances called Wediyan telling her that Yousef was kidnapped for a ransom. She sent part of her savings, but he was never released.
The book narrated on Wediyan’s tongue how people used to betray each other during Saddam’s rule, because anyone who didn’t tell about someone’s criticism to the government is considered a traitor and would be (and his loved ones) tortured to death. The same used to happen in Syria during Assad’s regime as described in Sophia or the Beginning of Tales (Feb 2021 post). So friends, colleagues, and relatives turned on each other to save themselves.
For example, Saddam Hussein’s son used to like a singer named Sabah Al-Sahl and forcing him to sing for him and his friends all night. Yet this singer hated this family, and even one night he told his wife in their bedroom that Hussein’s family are bandits and mercenaries who deserve to be hanged in the mosque’s square! Unfortunately, his wife recorded what he said and sent it to the president! She did this because he needed money and asked her to allow him to sell their house which he registered in her name upon marrying her, but she refused. So, Sabah Al-Sahl was tortured and forced to listen to the tape that his wife recorded before being hanged! Odai also used to send his men to schools and bring him photos of girls, who were forcibly brought to him, which is explored in
The Gardener of Baghdad (Nov 2021 post)!! Additionally, the fear of Wediyan from Saddam and his family was depicted in her inability to dare mention Hussein’s name in Paris, even after their death!
Currently, Iraqis are divided between regretting the murder of the royal Hashemite family, or preferring being ruled by an Iraqi leader instead of a Hashemite who is originally from Hijaz, while others reminisce over the old days of Saddam who despite his cruelty, people were living in a bliss as everyone had a job that paid well and all kinds of services were available from infrastructure to schools and hospitals. Unfortunately, people don’t value the price of dignity, employability, and accessibility to services until they lose them for believing that the US would bring them democracy and peace; yet the American invasion only brought destruction, abuse, and death, and left the country in pieces! This also happened in Libya, Yemen, Syria, Latin America, and other nations, which might happen too in Venezuela after its attack and abduction of Maduro.
Finally, the author recounted how Chavez changed from a revolutionary patriot to a socialist dictator, who stopped receiving writers and academics like Mansour. Finally, this story is not based only on true events, but also on real characters. For instance, a woman named Uqdus Abdul Hameed established Al-Rihab magazine in August 1946. Kaldone G. Nweihed also wrote the same books mentioned in this tale – Bolívar y el Tercer Mundo.
My favorite quotes are:
".الحكمة بنت التجربة. والتجربة تخطئ وتصيب"
"Wisdom is the daughter of experience. Experience can be right or wrong."
".خَدٌّ وعين. لا تنحي وجه كله لأيًّ كان"
"A cheek and an eye. Do not turn your whole face to anyone."
".إنّ نسيان الألم صحّة"
"The forgetting of pain is health."
".مثل أيّ امرأة، يمكنها أنّ تكون عسلاً في مواقف، وخلاًّ في أخرى"
"Like any woman, she can be sweet in some situations and difficult in others."
أستغفرُ الله إلا من محبَتِكُم فإنّها حَسَناتي يومَ ألقاهُ. فإن زعمتِ بأنّ الحُبِّ معصيّةٌ فالحُبُّ أجمل ما يُعصى به اللهُ." – الشاعر العباس بن الأحنف"
"I seek forgiveness from God except for my love for you, for it is my good deeds on the day I meet Him. If you claim that love is a sin, then love is the most beautiful thing through which one disobeys God." – the poet Al-Abbas ibn Al-Ahnaf
.jpg?withoutEnlargement&resize=142,29)
