Notes from March 2011 book group

This month we discussed Zorro by Isabel Allende

Born in southern California late in the eighteenth century, he is a child of two worlds. Diego de la Vega's father is an aristocratic Spanish military man turned landowner; his mother, a Shoshone warrior. Diego learns from his maternal grandmother, White Owl, the ways of her tribe while receiving from his father lessons in the art of fencing and in cattle branding. It is here, during Diego's childhood, filled with mischief and adventure, that he witnesses the brutal injustices dealt Native Americans by European settlers and first feels the inner conflict of his heritage.

At the age of sixteen, Diego is sent to Barcelona for a European education. In a country chafing under the corruption of Napoleonic rule, Diego follows the example of his celebrated fencing master and joins La Justicia, a secret underground resistance movement devoted to helping the powerless and the poor. With this tumultuous period as a backdrop, Diego falls in love, saves the persecuted, and confronts for the first time a great rival who emerges from the world of privilege.

Between California and Barcelona, the New World and the Old, the persona of Zorro is formed, a great hero is born, and the legend begins. After many adventures -- duels at dawn, fierce battles with pirates at sea, and impossible rescues -- Diego de la Vega, a.k.a. Zorro, returns to America to reclaim the hacienda on which he was raised and to seek justice for all who cannot fight for it themselves.

Every one of our book club members liked this long, historical book. Only one person thought it was too wordy. The author does a lot of research and describes all the groups that affect young Diego’s life: his traditional Spanish father & his European and American friends, his American Indian mother and Indian friends, the Padre, the gypsies, and the sailors and the pirates. All these people’s different beliefs helped create Zorro’s persona. This novel takes place in several countries. It brings up many topics for discussion including rich & poor, European vs American vs Indian cultures, right and wrong, slavery, wrongful imprisonment / forced labor, etc. We enjoyed this adventure book.