The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
“Well, this is a story about books”
“About books?”
“About accursed books, about the man who wrote them, about a character who broke out of the pages of a novel so that he could burn it, about a betrayal and a lost friendship. It’s a story of love, of hatred, and of the dreams that live in the shadow of the wind.”
This was a re-read, and the first of many I believe. I read The Shadow of the Wind in 2007 and remember being dumbfounded by it. I raced through the story, unable to set it down as I was trapped deeper into the prison of the words written by Zafon. The above quote sums the story up more brilliantly than any review can do. That being said, I will tell you what to expect when you pick up this novel for the first time.
This is not a story full of “bang bang shoot ‘em up”. It has its moments, but the beauty of this story is in the delicious tales being told throughout every paragraph. Stories written in the manner in which this author writes do not happen that often, and the fact that it’s so beautifully written and translated makes it even more incredible to me. When you read this novel prepare to devote time to it. Read through it slowly, and re-read passages that catch your eye. I noticed things I didn’t remember before and even got my father to start reading the book so that we could marvel over the descriptions together.
Most importantly, read the book. Ignore the hype and commercialization surrounding it. This is a beautiful story worth reading.
