Honorable Exiles

Lillian Lorca de Tagle is living proof of women''s progress in the twentieth century. Born into a privileged yet circumscribed world in 1914 as the daughter of a wealthy Chilean diplomat she became a translator and journalist at a time when few women of her class held jobs. Ordered into exile in the United States by her disapproving mother she became a successful reporter translator and editor while raising two daughters as a single working mother.In this beautifully written memoir de Tagle looks back over a fascinating cosmopolitan life. She describes how her upbringing in various European capitals prepared her for a life of continual change. She remembers the restrictions that upper class Chilean society placed on women and how these ultimately propelled her to a career in the United States that included an editorship at Amricas magazine and work for the State Department as well as a series of posts with the USIA/Voice of America.Woven throughout her memoir are vivid glimpses of family friends husbands and lovers including the artist Roberto Matta. This spicy blend of personalities work and culture tells a quintessential coming-of-age story of a thoroughly modern woman.