OBOC - Spain

An object at rest will remain at rest, proclaimed Newton in his famous law of inertia, unless acted on by a force. Unfortunately for me there exists no such external force that can make me write, and no fracking seems to have been able to get to the intrinsic motivation that lies somewhere deep inside me.  I’ve heard many writers claim that the story just wrote itself, and they were just a medium. That (in addition to countless other reasons) explains why I could never be a writer. It has always been too darn difficult for me. Anyway today the resolve to write came to me as I could see the year drawing to a close and I didn’t want to close 2013 without an entry in December.

Shadow of the wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafron was my pick for Spain. I am a fan of most things used/recycled (read, I am cheap). So when I found the Shadow of the wind available at my local library for 25c I decided to ignore the alphabetical order of things and jumped straight to Spain. I am also a fan of most things Gothic. In fact one of my favorite Jane Austen novels is Northanger Abbey (gothic parody at its best) and my love for all things black and all art from Tim Burton is known to friends and family. So it was no wonder that I enjoyed Shadow of the wind. I mean a book that opens with a cemetery of forgotten books was certainly going to have my undivided (well, almost) attention.

The hero Daniel finds himself completely possessed by a book with the eponymous title written by the little known Julian Carax. Having “rescued” this book from the cemetery when he was 10years old, he finds that his whole life is governed by some kind of a gothic quest for Julian and the story behind the book. Interwoven into the story, is the Spanish civil war and the air of unrest, terror and suspicion that hung over Barcelona at that time.  Who is the mystery person buying up all the copies of Julian Carax’s works? What is the connection between the monstrous Fumero, who is now firmly with Franco and Julian? Will Daniel’s life mirror that of Julian’s or will he find a happier ending? The book is a great read, so I suggest you find out yourself.