Books

I think, one of my favorite books is “La Sombra del Viento” (The Shadow of the Wind in English) of Carlos Ruiz Zafón. Someone gave it to me when I was 15 years old. It turned out to be a book that people gave themselves, just for the pleasure of reading. Which left me amazed because things are almost never free. It is the first book in a saga called “cementerio de Los Libros olvidados” (Cemetery of Forgotten Books in English). Four novels interconnected and set in a mysterious and gothic Barcelona that goes from the era of the industrial revolution to the years after the Spanish Civil War. The four stories, independent and self-sufficient in themselves, share some characters and scenarios.

The Shadow of the Wind, set in Barcelona in the period following the Spanish Civil War, concerns a young boy, Daniel Sempere. Just after the war, Daniel's father takes him to the secret Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a huge library of old, forgotten titles lovingly preserved by a select few initiates. According to tradition, everyone initiated to this secret place is allowed to take one book from it and must protect it for life. Daniel selects a book called The Shadow of the Wind by Julián Carax. That morning he takes the book home and reads it, completely engrossed. Daniel then attempts to look for other books by this unknown author but can find none. All he comes across are stories of a strange man—calling himself Laín Coubert, after a character in the book who happens to be the Devil—who has been seeking out Carax's books for decades, buying and burning them all.

Another book that I like is “Ensayo sobre la ceguera” (Blindness in English) of Jose Saramago. I read this book at school. Is a highly recommend book because it is capable of leaving you great teachings of the world in which we live.