Amazon Dream

Allen's ( The Daughter ) tale of her journey in the Peruvian Amazon is intriguing but strangely detached from the natural wonders she sees and the people she meets. Allen witnesses--and describes in clear, visual terms--the secret life that teems both above and below the surface of the forest, yet her tone seems curiously superficial in light of her claim that she had always fantasized about the Amazon. Particularly fascinating are her visits to the isolated villages of the Shipibo peoples, whose delicately painted pottery she admires; but here, too, her perceptions fail to penetrate the surface: having been told that the Shipibo love to bargain, she is disappointed when one artist refuses to negotiate with her. She is at once afraid of and interested in the various men who act as guides throughout her trip, but she seems somewhat ignorant about their culture. Allen reports the many times that someone asks her whether she is married or has children; seeing a photo of the cast of Dynasty on the wall of a village hut, she seems surprised to learn that ``everyone knows about Dynasty ,'' as one of her guides says. Photos not seen by PW. (Jan.)