The Wind Knows My Name

A Novel

By: Isabel Allende, Frances Riddle - translator

Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini, Maria Liatis

Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • “The lives of a Jewish boy escaping Nazi-occupied Europe and a mother and daughter fleeing twenty-first-century El Salvador intersect in this ambitious, intricate novel about war and immigration” (People), from the author of A Long Petal of the Sea and Violeta

“Timely, provocative . . . emotionally satisfying . . . [a story about] the kindness of strangers who become family.”—The New York Times Book Review

AN NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

Vienna, 1938. Samuel Adler is five years old when his father disappears during Kristallnacht—the night his family loses everything. As her child’s safety becomes ever harder to guarantee, Samuel’s mother secures a spot for him on a Kindertransport train out of Nazi-occupied Austria to England. He boards alone, carrying nothing but a change of clothes and his violin.

Arizona, 2019. Eight decades later, Anita Díaz and her mother board another train, fleeing looming danger in El Salvador and seeking refuge in the United States. But their arrival coincides with the new family separation policy, and seven-year-old Anita finds herself alone at a camp in Nogales. She escapes her tenuous reality through her trips to Azabahar, a magical world of the imagination. Meanwhile, Selena Durán, a young social worker, enlists the help of a successful lawyer in hopes of tracking down Anita’s mother.

Intertwining past and present, The Wind Knows My Name tells the tale of these two unforgettable characters, both in search of family and home. It is both a testament to the sacrifices that parents make and a love letter to the children who survive the most unfathomable dangers—and never stop dreaming.

©2023 Isabel Allende (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"[An] homage to parents who make unthinkable decisions to save their little ones, and to kids who survive some of the toughest challenges imaginable.”—Associated Press

“This beloved author transports us to two dark periods in history: Nazi-overrun Vienna in 1938 and the current dire situation at the border between the United States and Mexico. . . . Both stories are rich enough to carry the weight of one novel, but Allende expertly intertwines them. Employing her signature touch of magical realism, she wraps us in a compassionate story that reminds us ‘we could all just as easily find ourselves in similar situations.’”—The Washington Post

“Allende’s artistry shapes a lyrical romanticism around social political history and global turmoil . . . [Her dialogue is] current, relevant and real. Our civic discourse is centered by a multitude of voices talking about two things—immigration and identity—who belongs and who doesn't, and how to care for the dispossessed. In Allende’s version healing is possible, because empathy is a hopeful, albeit inconsistent, follower of migration.”—NPR

Superb, would have liked more character development

As others noted, the story, at times, felt slightly disjointed and I wondered if I had missed something due to inattentiveness. I’d rewind and discover I hadn’t. And developing a couple of the characters more fully would have enriched the book. Eduardo Ballerini is one of the very best narrators, I wish he would narrate more books. Love his voice and style.

A topical, charming and meaningful story by one of my favorite authors

An evocative, whimsical and timely story that can inspire the reader to action. A must read!

Wonderful story

This is my first Isabel Allende book and was not disappointed. In fact I was so impressed with how current the story is. It saddens me to think how unkind America is to immigrants. We did it to the Jews, the Asians, Blacks and now Central Americans. Inclusion is the very thing we were built on and the very thing we hate.

Never ending guilt and responsibility

Working with Venezuelan refugees in Ecuador, the story is not only relevant but never ending. I feel guilty as my Jewish Russian grandparents came to this country in 1917. Luck brings great responsibility.

Heartfelt beautiful story

I loved the characters and the relevance to what is happening in the world today

Heartwarming

This is an heartwarming story. Relevant to the immigrant crisis today. The narrator is excellent.

A heart-wrenching novel

4.5 stars.

A heart-wrenching novel on the realities, casualties, and long-term consequences of war, immigration, and refugees told from three generational stories from 1938 Vienna to the 1981 El Mozote massacre to present-day all delicately woven together.

Heartbreaking and beautiful

The book starts with Kristallnacht and doesn’t really let up from there. We follow several lives until the intersect and it’s equal parts joy and pain.

Another wonderful work by Allende

Great listen on a very important topic. Charming characters. Compelling story. I was sorry when it was over. Author’s notes were very interesting.

This book should be required reading.

The writer weaves a masterful telling of the parallel between the impact of the holocaust and American policies restricting migrants seeking sanctuary from crime ridden Latino countries. Like victims of the holocaust whose children were separated from their families or held in detention centers, or worst, this writer awakens her readers to the truth. A powerful read that demands that we not forget and not let history repeat itself.