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Eva Peron : A Biography
French-Argentine journalist Alicia Dujovne Ortiz leaves no stone unturned as she unveils the slippery truths behind the Peron government, like the rumoured links to the Nazis, and penetrates the complexities behind Eva's allure.
384 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
December 25, 2021
I wish this had been a better book. The author is knowledgeable and has packed a lot of information into this book. While it was a difficult read, learned a lot about Eva Peron and the tenor of her times. It is hard to tell if the problems with the text are the fault of the author, the translator or the editor.
The author, Alicia Ortiz, provides information on unsettled issues (like Eva’s birth certificate; how she came to Buenos Aires and what she did there) and at other times just offers opinions.
Like many others, Ortiz believes that Juan Peron could not have been president without Eva Duarte. She speculates on their public vs. private relationship. Ortiz feels that Evita’s concern for the poor was genuine but was still able to accept funding that was not honestly raised. She believes that Evita co-opted the feminists by essentially taking credit for their decades long struggle to get women the vote and folding their organizations into one (supporting Peron) led by her. The author has good descriptions of how deeply entrenched race, class and legitimacy were in Argentine culture and speculates how this effected both Evita and Juan,
Ortiz emphasizes symbolism. She often quotes from Tango (originating in the area of Evita’s childhood) music to make points about poverty and suffering. She interprets Evita’s fashion statements and has a long piece on how, after her European tour, Evita changed her hair style and what that meant.
There is documentation on how Juan and Evita benefited from the Nazis. As the industrialists and top Nazis saw that the Germany was losing the war, the Peron’s made Argentina a safe place to live and park their funds. Submarine loads of cash, gold and art works confiscated from Jews landed on Argentine beaches.
Unfortunately the book is hard to read.
A few examples
- Overly poetic prose, p. 126: Two paragraphs describing a workers march end with “Lost in this brassy sea, Eva was being born as a Venus, not from a blue wave, but from a nutritive mud and from the premonitory delta.”
- Highly subjective statements, p. 171 : While Evita’s fashion is important to the person she made herself into the book is full of detail like this from her trip to Spain. “Her outfit like her body reveals neither grace nor agility. Her advisors had probably decided she should look serious. The result was stiff, but not without humor.”
- Organization. There are too many pages like pp. 289-290 that need to be clarified or reorganized. First are the events of June 1955
- that a Catholic procession turned into a violent anti-Peron demonstration;
- that Catholic Charities will be shut down;
- there will be a secularizing of the Buenos Aires Cathedral property
- THEN it says Peronists set fires to churches and demonstrated to “support Peron whose goal was to neutralize the rumors started by Juancinto Duarte’s (Evita’s brother) death”.
- The next section is about Juancinto's suicide or murder which happened in April.
One problem for the reader is that the time sequence is off. The death occurred first. The bigger problem is that there is no apparent link of either the pro-and anti Peron violence to rumors about Juancinto. I would also think the three blows to the church would be a larger concern. While this is not a huge deal, the book is so rife with material like this that doesn’t hold together well.
The book piqued my interest and I reviewed clips on You Tube which show the excitement Evita created and the emotional attachment the people had to her.
There is a lot in this book. It is over 25 years old. Perhaps an update with a good editor could make this a first class biography.
The author, Alicia Ortiz, provides information on unsettled issues (like Eva’s birth certificate; how she came to Buenos Aires and what she did there) and at other times just offers opinions.
Like many others, Ortiz believes that Juan Peron could not have been president without Eva Duarte. She speculates on their public vs. private relationship. Ortiz feels that Evita’s concern for the poor was genuine but was still able to accept funding that was not honestly raised. She believes that Evita co-opted the feminists by essentially taking credit for their decades long struggle to get women the vote and folding their organizations into one (supporting Peron) led by her. The author has good descriptions of how deeply entrenched race, class and legitimacy were in Argentine culture and speculates how this effected both Evita and Juan,
Ortiz emphasizes symbolism. She often quotes from Tango (originating in the area of Evita’s childhood) music to make points about poverty and suffering. She interprets Evita’s fashion statements and has a long piece on how, after her European tour, Evita changed her hair style and what that meant.
There is documentation on how Juan and Evita benefited from the Nazis. As the industrialists and top Nazis saw that the Germany was losing the war, the Peron’s made Argentina a safe place to live and park their funds. Submarine loads of cash, gold and art works confiscated from Jews landed on Argentine beaches.
Unfortunately the book is hard to read.
A few examples
- Overly poetic prose, p. 126: Two paragraphs describing a workers march end with “Lost in this brassy sea, Eva was being born as a Venus, not from a blue wave, but from a nutritive mud and from the premonitory delta.”
- Highly subjective statements, p. 171 : While Evita’s fashion is important to the person she made herself into the book is full of detail like this from her trip to Spain. “Her outfit like her body reveals neither grace nor agility. Her advisors had probably decided she should look serious. The result was stiff, but not without humor.”
- Organization. There are too many pages like pp. 289-290 that need to be clarified or reorganized. First are the events of June 1955
- that a Catholic procession turned into a violent anti-Peron demonstration;
- that Catholic Charities will be shut down;
- there will be a secularizing of the Buenos Aires Cathedral property
- THEN it says Peronists set fires to churches and demonstrated to “support Peron whose goal was to neutralize the rumors started by Juancinto Duarte’s (Evita’s brother) death”.
- The next section is about Juancinto's suicide or murder which happened in April.
One problem for the reader is that the time sequence is off. The death occurred first. The bigger problem is that there is no apparent link of either the pro-and anti Peron violence to rumors about Juancinto. I would also think the three blows to the church would be a larger concern. While this is not a huge deal, the book is so rife with material like this that doesn’t hold together well.
The book piqued my interest and I reviewed clips on You Tube which show the excitement Evita created and the emotional attachment the people had to her.
There is a lot in this book. It is over 25 years old. Perhaps an update with a good editor could make this a first class biography.
June 21, 2014
I don't know why but I just couldn't get interested in this biography of a fascinating subject. Eva Peron was a saint to her people, especially the poor but basically started her life as a prostitute. She was married to one of the strong men dictators of South America. That should make for one interesting book......maybe it is but it did not resonate with me. Part of the problem might be that it is a translation which led to some pretty awkward sentences and grammar. The author seemed to be more interested in Evita's good looks and beautiful fashion sense than the government machinations in which she and her husband were involved. I really wanted to like it but it didn't quite make the grade.
July 22, 2014
I bailed after a third of the way through. it was more Peron and the political scene rather than Eva...
August 20, 2019
The translation is dicey, and the author is not exactly objective, but it's still a fascinating read.
January 9, 2015
This is one of the worst biographies I have ever read. It reads like a gossip rag for the majority of the book. The author doesn't care to separate fact from fiction and frequently mentions multiple versions of the same event without clarifying which is accurate. The author even suggests a few times that the fictional account is more accurate of the feeling at the time (my interpretation). The final, third, section of the book is the most interesting but it's not enough for me to recommend this book. Eva Peron is a fascinating subject. Agree or disagree with her choices, she made her place in history. I wish this biography had done her justice. I struggled to finish reading it.
March 21, 2025
Gave up after 30 pages. The English translation is unreadable. I was hoping for an in-depth historical biography of a fascinating and influential woman. What I got was an incoherent jumble of barely comprehensible English. Here’s to hoping I find a suitable English-language edition on Eva.
November 10, 2018
Eva Peron is a fascinating biography. The former first lady of Argentina is revered much like Princess Diana of England is today. The masses love her. She came from very humble beginnings with a drive to achieve like no other. Born to an unwed mother and in poverty throughout her childhood, she had a true understanding of the needs of the people, and used all her resources to better their lives.
Fiercely independent, she struck out on her own at age 15 to make it big in the city of Buenos Aires. Becoming a household name after becoming a famous radio actress, she met the infamous Colonel Juan Peron at a fund raiser and this led to the rest of the fairytale story of her life. Sadly cancer took her away at age 33, and thus became somewhat of a "saint" to those who revered her.
This biography doesn't just paint a flowery, saintlike picture, but tells both the good and bad aspects of the personality that changed Argentina in the 1940's and early 1950's. Great reading!
Fiercely independent, she struck out on her own at age 15 to make it big in the city of Buenos Aires. Becoming a household name after becoming a famous radio actress, she met the infamous Colonel Juan Peron at a fund raiser and this led to the rest of the fairytale story of her life. Sadly cancer took her away at age 33, and thus became somewhat of a "saint" to those who revered her.
This biography doesn't just paint a flowery, saintlike picture, but tells both the good and bad aspects of the personality that changed Argentina in the 1940's and early 1950's. Great reading!
January 16, 2013
Not a bad biography, overall. However, the book was marred by a clumsy translation- sometimes sentences were structured in a manner which made no sense, sometimes words were misused, sometimes spanish phrases were left undeciphered.
I would have preferred more description of Evita's actions, and less of her appearance. And for the author to stop describing Peron as 'virile'. And for less nonsense about Nazi gold.
Still- glad I read it.
I would have preferred more description of Evita's actions, and less of her appearance. And for the author to stop describing Peron as 'virile'. And for less nonsense about Nazi gold.
Still- glad I read it.
June 22, 2016
It was pretty good. The writing was pretty boring, but the subject was interesting as hell though. I wanted to read this because of the play Evita. Of course I wanted to know the real Eva Peron. I just couldn't figure out if she was happy with her life or not. But the part that really bothered me was what happened after she died. If it was true, It was very evil what happened. Desecrating a corpse. WTF is WRONG with people?
September 8, 2013
This book is a translation of the original Spanish publication. It does a decent job of keeping you engaged and wanting to know more about who Eva Peron was. The author also allows you to get to know Juan Peron and his politics. I am certain his wife's causes had much to do with cementing his enduring popularity and influence in Argentinian politics even though she died at such a young age.
January 10, 2022
Evitan tarina on mielenkiintoinen, mutta tämä kirja on todella huonosti kirjoitettu tai käännetty. Välillä lauseissa ei ole tolkkua, mikä tekee lukemisesta raskasta. Ei ihme, että kirja jäi aikoinaan kesken.
Ostin kirjan vuonna 1997 Madonnan tähdittämän musikaalielokuvan innoittamana, mutta lannistuin jo alkumetreille, tuskin pääsin Evitan lapsuutta pidemmälle, koska teksti oli puuduttavaa ja heikkotasoista, eikä kirja ollut lähellekään niin loisteliaan viihdyttävä kuin se elokuva. No, toisella yrittämällä 25 vuotta myöhemmin jaksoin painaa tekstin heikkouksista huolimatta loppuun asti.
Evita, Eva Peron, oli ristiriitainen hahmo. Toisaalta ahne, määräilevä fasistijohtajan vaimo, toisaalta köyhien auttaja ja hyväntekijä. Joka tapauksessa uskomattoman poikkeuksellinen, valovoimainen, energinen, aikaansaava ihminen, jolle jäi jonkinlainen pyhimyksen sädekehä pään ympärille liian varhaisen kuoleman takia.
”Peronismi oli hymyilevää fasismia. Vähemmän fasistista fasismia, koska johtajan rinnalla oli nainen.”
Ortizin kirjassa on paljon epävarmuutta: tapahtumista on monia versioita, kukaan ei oikein tiedä mitä oikeasti tapahtui. Ortiz siteeraa eri lähteitä, osin keskenään ristiriitaisia, mutta yrittää pitää kohtuullisen objektiivisen lähestymistavan. Evitan toiminnassa on paljon kiitettävää, mutta on myös paljon kritisoitavaa. Kirja onnistuu kuitenkin olemaan yllättävän neutraali.
Mielenkiintoinen elämäntarina, huonosti kirjoitettu, mutta kuvat toivat mukavan lisäsilauksen. Alkoi tehdä mieli katsoa taas se loistava musikaali!
Ostin kirjan vuonna 1997 Madonnan tähdittämän musikaalielokuvan innoittamana, mutta lannistuin jo alkumetreille, tuskin pääsin Evitan lapsuutta pidemmälle, koska teksti oli puuduttavaa ja heikkotasoista, eikä kirja ollut lähellekään niin loisteliaan viihdyttävä kuin se elokuva. No, toisella yrittämällä 25 vuotta myöhemmin jaksoin painaa tekstin heikkouksista huolimatta loppuun asti.
Evita, Eva Peron, oli ristiriitainen hahmo. Toisaalta ahne, määräilevä fasistijohtajan vaimo, toisaalta köyhien auttaja ja hyväntekijä. Joka tapauksessa uskomattoman poikkeuksellinen, valovoimainen, energinen, aikaansaava ihminen, jolle jäi jonkinlainen pyhimyksen sädekehä pään ympärille liian varhaisen kuoleman takia.
”Peronismi oli hymyilevää fasismia. Vähemmän fasistista fasismia, koska johtajan rinnalla oli nainen.”
Ortizin kirjassa on paljon epävarmuutta: tapahtumista on monia versioita, kukaan ei oikein tiedä mitä oikeasti tapahtui. Ortiz siteeraa eri lähteitä, osin keskenään ristiriitaisia, mutta yrittää pitää kohtuullisen objektiivisen lähestymistavan. Evitan toiminnassa on paljon kiitettävää, mutta on myös paljon kritisoitavaa. Kirja onnistuu kuitenkin olemaan yllättävän neutraali.
Mielenkiintoinen elämäntarina, huonosti kirjoitettu, mutta kuvat toivat mukavan lisäsilauksen. Alkoi tehdä mieli katsoa taas se loistava musikaali!
January 23, 2021
It is impossible to make a book about Eva Peron boring, but Ortiz tries her best. This truly feels like reading a 300 page wikipedia article.
As I read Shawn Fields's translation, I couldn't help but feel as if this book should have stayed with it's intended Argentinean audience. Not enough is done to explain necessary pragmatics to a new audience which causes for a disconnected reading experience.
Ultimately, this biography lacks passion and any critical thought towards the incredibly divisive Evita. This may be useful if you need a book to reference on Eva and the Peronist period. However, saying this, I found the timeline to be disjointed and difficult to follow. Additionally, Ortiz rarely makes any attempt to explore just how Evita became such a martyed and despised person.
As I read Shawn Fields's translation, I couldn't help but feel as if this book should have stayed with it's intended Argentinean audience. Not enough is done to explain necessary pragmatics to a new audience which causes for a disconnected reading experience.
Ultimately, this biography lacks passion and any critical thought towards the incredibly divisive Evita. This may be useful if you need a book to reference on Eva and the Peronist period. However, saying this, I found the timeline to be disjointed and difficult to follow. Additionally, Ortiz rarely makes any attempt to explore just how Evita became such a martyed and despised person.
March 14, 2023
I picked up this book because I am going to Argentina next month and want to know something about this iconic woman. Unfortunately, I found this book a difficult read and I had to re-read many parts multiple times and I still didn't understand exactly what the author was trying to communicate. Admittedly the author tried to bring multiple and conflicting views together for this book to give a fair perspective of the woman, but to me it just made it more difficult to read.
September 14, 2018
After about five pages, I started telling myself to stop reading this book. For some reason, I finished it. I'm assuming that the problem is the translation. The language and style are florid. The sentence structure is tortured. I'm sure there are other books about Eva Peron that are easier to read. There is a lot of information in this book. If I had to do it again, I would not read it.
September 20, 2020
I started this with little interest in the subject and quit a few chapters in with even less interest. Perhaps some other biographer would bring her to life, make her interesting or admirable, but not this one.
May 9, 2025
Aihe kiinnostaa, mutta kirja ei vastannut odotuksia. Kirja ei ole elämänkerta, vaan kertoo paljon laajemmasti mm. peronismista, historiasta ja Juan Peronista. Kirja vilisee nimiä ja tuntuu pomppivan ajassa niin, ettei aina alkuun tiedä puhutaanko ajasta Evan eläessä vai jo kuoltua.
Read
July 26, 2023DNF. I found reading this more of a chore than a pleasure, so gave up about halfway.
April 25, 2024
This biography is packed with so many facts and details about the political climate in Argentina before, during, and after Eva Peron’s time. Super informative, but difficult to read.
January 26, 2026
uma biografia incrível, detalhada e de uma pesquisa no mínimo admirável. baita leitura.
September 5, 2013
An excellent biography that has made use of several documents only recently released to the public.
Eva Peron has always been an interesting character. Growing up in poverty and in an ambiguous family situation, she was determined from a young age to better herself and gain the respect of others. She boldly left home when she was young and worked hard at becoming an actress, although she did not have much talent and so was never very successful.
Her complex and strange relationship with her husband Juan Peron, the Argentinian dictator is explained. Publically she adored him, privately she displayed different emotions. Many of these details are now available from interviews that were completed with her closest associates. They also explain the motivation behind her many good works for the poor.
The connections to the Nazis and details surrounding the millions of dollars in war loot that arrived in Argentina are also explained. The collusion of the Vatican and the famous "Rat Line" is also described. It is easy to see why South America became such a major destination for these scoundrels at the close of the war.
Also of interest is the hype surrounding Eva Peron's death, the mysterious preparation of her body and the supposed location of her remains.
An Interesting read.
Eva Peron has always been an interesting character. Growing up in poverty and in an ambiguous family situation, she was determined from a young age to better herself and gain the respect of others. She boldly left home when she was young and worked hard at becoming an actress, although she did not have much talent and so was never very successful.
Her complex and strange relationship with her husband Juan Peron, the Argentinian dictator is explained. Publically she adored him, privately she displayed different emotions. Many of these details are now available from interviews that were completed with her closest associates. They also explain the motivation behind her many good works for the poor.
The connections to the Nazis and details surrounding the millions of dollars in war loot that arrived in Argentina are also explained. The collusion of the Vatican and the famous "Rat Line" is also described. It is easy to see why South America became such a major destination for these scoundrels at the close of the war.
Also of interest is the hype surrounding Eva Peron's death, the mysterious preparation of her body and the supposed location of her remains.
An Interesting read.
November 18, 2024
In a field full of dross this is probably the best biography in English of Eva Peron, but that isn't saying much. The translation may not be great but I don't read Spanish so it I leave the final judgement to others, all I will say is that the English is clunky in places. I salute the author for going beyond the normal newspaper/gossip column sources of most biographies of Evita and that the author is Spanish is a help because she is not writing from within the cultural cliches of to many of the English language biographies.
For all these reasons I have given the biography a too generous four stars. The truth is that for me the best books to read about Evita and her husband are 'Santa Evita' and 'The Peron Novel' by Tomas Eloy Martinez. They are 'fiction' but Eloy Martinez is also a first rate journalist (of the old fashioned sort which, particularly in many Spanish speaking countries, means a great deal more then English speaking ones in the past or now.
If you are going to read a biography of Evita read this one but, if you want to really understand what the era of Evita and Juan Peron was or meant (and how little the myth matched reality) read Eloy Martinez.
For all these reasons I have given the biography a too generous four stars. The truth is that for me the best books to read about Evita and her husband are 'Santa Evita' and 'The Peron Novel' by Tomas Eloy Martinez. They are 'fiction' but Eloy Martinez is also a first rate journalist (of the old fashioned sort which, particularly in many Spanish speaking countries, means a great deal more then English speaking ones in the past or now.
If you are going to read a biography of Evita read this one but, if you want to really understand what the era of Evita and Juan Peron was or meant (and how little the myth matched reality) read Eloy Martinez.
July 4, 2009
I am fascinated by people who rise from poverty and defeat nearly impossible odds to make their mark on the world. Evita is a controversial figure, to be sure -- a fascist and a bit of a goose-stepper, but also intensely devoted to her country and its neediest members, even to the point of openly defying her country's ruling oligarchy. To her beloved poor, she constantly reinforced the idea that they had the _right_ to desire happy lives. And Evita's own story was testament to the power of desire.
The translation here is at points completely bizarre -- I found myself going over several passages, trying to parse their meaning, before finally giving up and moving on. But the author nonetheless gives due consideration to both the "white myth" and the "black myth" of Evita -- she cuts through both the hagiographies and the criticisms to present a balanced view of this complex woman. I plan to read more about her in the future.
The translation here is at points completely bizarre -- I found myself going over several passages, trying to parse their meaning, before finally giving up and moving on. But the author nonetheless gives due consideration to both the "white myth" and the "black myth" of Evita -- she cuts through both the hagiographies and the criticisms to present a balanced view of this complex woman. I plan to read more about her in the future.
May 21, 2021
This book traces the life of Eca Duarte from her illegitimate birth in 1919 through her actress days in Buenos Aires and her meeting and romance with Juan Peron, who eventually married Eva, giving her the platform to become a figure of hope for the poor Argentinian workers, as Evita. This book also spends a considerable amount of time detailing Peron's involvement with the Nazi party. finally we see Eva's illness and her fight to leave a mark on the world before it claims her.
I am sure that the author meant well in making this version "fair", but what results is a very wishy-washy and dry story. A better read would come from committing to one version or another and running with it. Plus, since Juan was the one involved with the Nazis and this book is about Eva, why spend so much time talking about it? Why spend 60% of the book on politics when Eva was only invested in power for Peron and infamy for herself?
The musical actually gave more useful information that this!!
I am sure that the author meant well in making this version "fair", but what results is a very wishy-washy and dry story. A better read would come from committing to one version or another and running with it. Plus, since Juan was the one involved with the Nazis and this book is about Eva, why spend so much time talking about it? Why spend 60% of the book on politics when Eva was only invested in power for Peron and infamy for herself?
The musical actually gave more useful information that this!!
May 17, 2010
The back cover says that this author "separates the myth of the saint from the myth of the power-hungry prostitute". However, I felt like Ortiz almost wholly endorsed the latter view (although in a fair way), until the last third, when she abruptly transitioned to Evita's charitable works. My biggest complaint was that while the personal parts of the biography were extremely detailed, perhaps too much - how could she know what Juan and Eva did in bed when they first started dating? - the broader parts of the story didn't make a lot of sense without some prior knowledge of Argentine history. If your knowledge of Latin American history is similar to my 10th grade World Cultures Class, 30-40 minutes on Wikipedia would be a good idea before starting this book.
December 23, 2012
I found this book really interesting, but by the last third of the book my interest was beginning to wane and it was a real struggle to complete the book. What killed my interest? The way the author wrote, I found her style far too flowery. I was fascinated by the Peron's involvement in protecting Nazi's and its involvement with the church. I found some of the authors claims about the Peron's intimate life unlikely as I imagine these were not details that would have been shared and seem to be based on rumour and gossip, rather than fact.
July 9, 2012
It was ok. Honestly when I read this book long time ago I was shocked for so many things I didn´t knew or expected about the life and character of Eva Perón.The book portrayed her as an ambitious person with little true concern for her "descamisados" or a concern mostly based on passion and convenience than on truly consciousness of their condition. I have read various biographical articles which also highlight aspects of this. I wonder if anything different can be said about her.
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September 8, 2009this book is very detailed and specific. i like the random facts that i'm learning as i go about geography, argentina, words..... Also, the author does a good job of telling all of the possible versions of eva peron's life. An added benefit is the song don't cry for me argentina usually starts playing in my head whenever i pick up the book!
November 17, 2013
The translation is very poorly done and there's a lot of sidebar analysis done by the author who is not very impartial. She references her imprisoned father at one point although it's never fully clear whether he was imprisoned under Peronism. Despite these issues, I learned quite a bit about Argentine history, politics, etc.
February 3, 2011
This book is quite detailed but a lot of the details are ones I've never heard before, there is not a lot in the way of providing sources for the information, and that bothered me. I'll be looking for another bio of her.
October 14, 2010
After having seen the musical and having been to Buenos Aires, I decided to find out the reality behind the legend/myth of Evita. This was very interesting, thorough and easy to read. It seemed quite balanced not deifying her nor villifying her.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews