The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón is widely regarded as an ode to modern literature. It is a beautifully written book and is a mesmerising love story and literary thriller with a lovely blend of mystery and historical fiction set in the Gothic heart of Barcelona, Spain. It is a book about a book with the same title. Does that sound a bit confusing?

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

This book has been on my to-be read radar for quite some time and I have been putting off reading it as I feel a bit intimidated by its fame as a literary sensation. I always have the feeling that literary masterpieces are often harder to read.

Having read the book, I feel that my initial intimation about the book is justified. It is a book filled with lovely quotes and quite a sprinkling of difficult vocabulary throughout the book. It is not an easy read and requires a bit of concentration to keep up with the story.  But it is without doubt a literary gem with rich and descriptive story telling that showcases Zafón’s almost poetic writing style.

It is 1945 and Barcelona is enduring the long aftermath of civil war when Daniel Sempere’s bookseller father decides his ten-year old son is old enough to visit the secret Cemetery of Forgotten Books. This labyrinthine sanctuary houses the books that have lost their owners, books that are no longer remembered by anyone.

There Daniel must ‘adopt’ a single book. His choice falls on The Shadow of the Wind. Entranced by the book, he embarks on an epic quest to find the other books written by its mysterious author, Julian Carax. What he learns is that someone has been burning every copy of Carax’s novels. Daniel may possess one of the last copies remaining.

Daniel’s efforts to protect the book and learn more about Carax plunges him into a world of dark secrets, forbidden love, obsession and scars from Barcelona’s troubled past during the Spanish Civil War and World War II. As Daniel’s quest continues, frightening parallels between his own life and Carax’s begin to emerge.

Go read the book and be bewitched by it!