Review of “La voz dormida” by the Spanish writer Dulce Chacón

“La voz dormida” (Alfaguara, 2002) is a historical novel by the Spanish writer Dulce Chacón. It was recognized by the Booksellers' Guild with the Book of the Year Award in 2002.

The film adaptation arrived in 2011 from the filmmaker and screenwriter Benito Zambrano (Solas, Pan de limón con semillas de amapola).

It is a story from the Spanish postwar in which the protagonists are women who took a step forward to fight for freedom. Their courage landed many of them in prison, which is the main setting of the novel. “La voz dormida” tells the story of the defeated.

The story largely takes place in the Ventas women's prison in Madrid. There the protagonists are presented, women who are based on real characters, such as Reme, Tomasa, Elvira, and Hortensia. The story takes place over a period of more than twenty years, between 1939 and 1963.

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