Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon - 20th Century Collection 29

Gabriela, the mulatto with skin the colour of cinnamon and the scent of cloves, will remain in literature as a beautiful female figure, simple and spontaneous, beyond Good and Evil. With his unparalleled lyricism and poetic inspiration, Jorge Amado creates unforgettable characters, and the moving love story of the Arab Nacib and the mulatto Gabriela undoubtedly places them in the gallery of lovers in the History of Literature.

But Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon is more than just the love story of the Arab Nacib and Gabriela from the hinterlands. It is the chronicle of a small city in Bahia, Ilhéus, as it underwent abrupt transformations around the year 1925.

The wealth brought by cocoa enabled urban development and economic progress, profoundly transforming the city's appearance. However, the customs of the inhabitants evolved little, and in that scenario of violence, the law of the strongest prevailed – the farmers – who, with their gunmen at their service, imposed the rule of hatred and terror.

Sensual and innocent, wise and childlike, the cook Gabriela conquers not only the heart of Nacib and a multitude of Ilhéus residents, but also that of readers from various countries and generations. Adapted for television, her story became one of the most successful Brazilian soap operas worldwide. In cinema, the role of Nacib is played by Marcello Mastroianni, and that of Gabriela by Sónia Braga, as had already happened in the soap opera.