The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

This novel was first published in 2001 in Zafón's first language of Spanish- he is a native of Barcelona- but was translated into English in 2004 by Lucia Graves. Set in the mysterious city of post-Civil War Barcelona, The Shadow of the Wind tells the fascinating story of Daniel Sempere, who at the beginning of the novel is 10 years old (however for most of the book is around the age of 18.) His father owns the Sempere and Sons bookshop in the Calle Santa Ana and both father and son have a passion for literature that is so vital to their lives, for their livelihood and their own sense of purpose. The book starts as Sempere Senior takes his son to the clandestine Cemetery of Forgotten Books, an unknown labyrinth of thousands of forgotten books, a treasure hidden in the depths of the city. Daniel picks out a book - as any visitor is allowed to do - named The Shadow of the Wind by Julian Carax. Enraptured in this delightful albeit dark novel, the young adolescent develops an insatiable interest in Julian Carax, one who shall never die. This is the key focus of the entire book.

Daniel meets many shady characters along this path, but also makes some irreplaceable friends. The demonic, nefarious persona of Inspector Javier Fumero makes many appearances, a personification of all evil that Daniel must overcome. There is also an enigmatic and obscure character who seems to be burning and destroying all trace of Carax's existence, who the young Sempere encounters for the first time one stormy, windswept night. However, there are also love interests for our hero; primarily one young lady whose name I shall not reveal. Moreover the humourous and loveable Fermin, who becomes Daniel's closest companion and best friend. Fermin always manages to act cheerfully despite the tragic traumas he has been through before we even get to meet him.

Overall, this is a fantastic novel, a true classic of our day, due to Zafón's eloquent and charming prose and the unexpected twists in the story. This is definitely my favourite book and I would recommend it to all lovers of literature of the age of 13 minimum. Hope you love it as much as I do! I also recommend Zafón's next book: The Angel's Game. This is for slightly older readers and is in general a much darker novel.

by Cherry Elliott-Millar 8H