51 pages • 1 hour read
Isabel AllendeA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Content Warning: This guide refers to mass violence and antisemitism, which are depicted in The Wind Knows My Name.
Early in the novel, Volker gives Samuel one of the medals he earned during military service and tells Samuel that it’s magical, granting courage if one rubs it. The medal becomes a symbol of the support a family can offer Samuel, and he keeps it with his violin and a picture of his parents. That Volker earned the medal during a war isn’t significant to its symbolic value because it’s more important as a memento of how Volker built a relationship with Samuel while hiding him from the Nazi party. Although the text doesn’t mention the medal often, it represents how that support stays with Samuel throughout his life, much like his music. Additionally, the metal’s magic links Samuel’s life to Anita’s in that her guardian angel and Azabahar provide similar mystical support during times of trouble.
At the novel’s end, Samuel passes the medal down to Anita, noting, “You can rub it as often as you need to, its power never wears out” (251). This reflects how Volker’s kindness and support remained an integral part of Samuel’s life and demonstrates Samuel’s hope that his support will be integral in Anita’s life.
By Isabel Allende
A Long Petal of the Sea
Isabel Allende
And of Clay Are We Created
Isabel Allende
City of the Beasts
Isabel Allende
Daughter Of Fortune
Isabel Allende
Eva Luna
Isabel Allende, Transl. Margaret Sayers Peden
In the Midst of Winter
Isabel Allende
Island Beneath the Sea
Isabel Allende
Maya's Notebook: A Novel
Isabel Allende
Of Love and Shadows
Isabel Allende
Paula
Isabel Allende
Portrait in Sepia
Isabel Allende
Ripper
Isabel Allende
The House of the Spirits
Isabel Allende
The Japanese Lover
Isabel Allende
The Stories of Eva Luna
Isabel Allende
Two Words
Isabel Allende
Violeta
Isabel Allende
Zorro
Isabel Allende
Books About Race in America
View Collection
Books on Justice & Injustice
View Collection
Books on U.S. History
View Collection
Challenging Authority
View Collection
Contemporary Books on Social Justice
View Collection
Diverse Voices (High School)
View Collection
Equality
View Collection
Family
View Collection
Good & Evil
View Collection
Guilt
View Collection
Hispanic & Latinx American Literature
View Collection
Historical Fiction
View Collection
Immigrants & Refugees
View Collection
International Holocaust Remembrance Day
View Collection
Memorial Day Reads
View Collection
Military Reads
View Collection
Politics & Government
View Collection
Power
View Collection
Pride & Shame
View Collection
Safety & Danger
View Collection
Sexual Harassment & Violence
View Collection
World War II
View Collection