Willingly relinquishing her own privacy, she writes of the drug addiction of Willie's daughter, Jennifer, who had a child but died young due to her life of debauchery. Allende battled with her daughter-in-law, who leaves Allende's son, Nico, for the woman who is engaged to Willie's stepson.

She worries about the rare disease, porphyria, which runs in her family and killed her daughter, Paula. She regrets that no research is being done to prevent or cure it. "It's very difficult to identify and the symptoms vary. My son, Nico, and two of my granddaughters have it."

(Porphyia is a group of eight disorders involving body chemicals that differ considerably from each other. Often the disorders affect the skin or the nervous system.)

In the book, she also discusses the tragic happenings in the lives of her close friends, Tabra and Juliette. She tells how she chose the woman she wanted to be Nico's second wife. She candidly details her own mistakes and refers to herself with self-deprecation.

She often refers to other women who are allegedly more beautiful than she is, i.e., Sophia Loren. When told she is still beautiful at 65, she said, "Thank you, but you have only seen pictures."

Speaking of Willie, she said, "Now we're happy because we're old and have worked through so many problems. We're in love. Not to say we'll always be in love. When he gets older, I might have to put him in a nursing home and go find someone else!"

Allende attributes her writer's inspiration to her travels. "I go to other countries with no motive, then years later, that sentiment opens my mind about what goes on in the world. People who don't travel become provincial."

She admits to being "very disciplined" as a writer, starting a new project every Jan. 7 "unless I haven't finished the one I'm working on. Sometimes, I have a place but no story. I use no outline."

When asked if Anthony Banderas represented the only threat to her marriage to Willie, she said, "Tony Banderas is the most serious threat to my mental health! But when we went to a movie premiere with Catherine Zeta Jones, Willie was enthralled with her!"

Willie also has become a novelist, too. Initially, Allende doubted he could do it, but she helped him and now he is successful. Once in a car together, he turned "solemn, then said, 'You came to change my life!' I said, 'Of course. Your life is a mess!' So I redecorated the house and remodeled him."

Asked who she would prefer to portray her if "The Sum of Our Days" is made into a movie, she said, "I would prefer Penelope Cruz, but I would probably get Sylvester Stallone!"

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E-mail: dennis@desnews.com