The Shadow Of The Wind by Carlos Ruiz Safon
This might be your favorite book. It's not mine.
In a college English class1, I had a professor who put Under The Feet of Jesus by Helena Maria Viramontes on the syllabus.
Said professor was clearly a giant fan of the novel, singing its praises in every class. If you haven’t read it, it is excessively lyrical, almost a poem in novel form. We then had our breakout discussion session with the TA, who asked us if this was a good novel. Naïve freshmen that we were, we said, of course. He asked why, and we replied that the language was so beautiful and it sounded like an opera in text. The TA said, “And that’s what makes a good novel?”. He then asked us to tell him the story, as though he had never read the book and wasn’t literarily inclined. We quickly discovered that we didn’t have much to say. Using that Socratic style method, this TA, who’s name I have woefully forgot, has stuck in my mind for years for demonstrating that flowery prose is fine, but does not a good story make.
I felt the same way reading The Shadow Of The Wind by Carlos Ruiz Safon. Let me tell you why.
Want to get this book? Or, you know, a better one? How about looking here?
Spoiler-Free Summary
Daniel is living in post-Civil War Barcelona with his widowed father, a bookseller. When he is ten years old, Daniel’s father leads him to The Cemetery Of Forgotten Books, a secret library housing the rarest of books that time has forgotten. Daniel is told to choose a book that will be his to guard and care for, and he chooses The Shadow Of The Wind by Julian Carax, an author shrouded in mystery. This kicks off a saga following Daniel through his life, as he ventures to unravel who Julian Carax was, what happened to him, and why so many people seem determined to keep him a secret at all costs.
The Good
The writing in this novel is among the most gorgeous I’ve ever seen. Nearly every page has some turn of phrase or another that will force you to stop reading just to drink it in. I’ve amassed some of these in the quotes section below, but I can’t rightly do it justice. Zafon is a lyricist, and a lot of his sentences are like warm honey. I can just about promise that if you read this book, some grouping of words will lodge itself in your memory for a long time.
The scope of this book is also impressive. Depending on the printing you pick up, you’re in for ~500 pages covering several decades of Daniel’s life, tracking dozens of characters and several contradicting narratives that all come together at the end. You can imagine Zafon with a giant corkboard of pictures and red string to keep it all straight.
Some of the characters are also very memorable and lovable, in particular, Fermin. Fermin’s enthusiasm, over-confidence, humor, and loyalty is heartwarming and charming. I do wish other characters had such unique personalities, particularly the women (more on that in a moment), but Fermin was a bright spot.
The Bad
This novel is s-l-o-w. I suspect that’s by design, as it feeds into the romantic, melodramatic qualities therein, but regardless of the reason it is slower than cold molasses running uphill. The argument could be made that the pace lets the aforementioned lyrical prose breathe, and gives space to the sweeping narrative. I don’t think that argument is wrong. I do think that you know if you’re the kind of reader that likes that kind of novel.
Ok, that out of the way, we need to talk about how Safon treats the women in this novel. Depending on how you define it, there are four main female characters in The Shadow Of The Wind: Clara, Nuria, Bea, and Penelope. Every one of them is defined by how they serve the men around them. Dodging spoilers here, but in each case, a man falls desperately, irreparably into love with them before the woman speaks2. They are constantly discussed in terms of how attractive they were in their prime and how far they are from it currently. Along the way, they are beaten, raped, imprisoned, starved, and constantly cheated on3. Each of them seems to exist solely to further a man’s growth and/or desires. Without fail, they are also punished should they disobey a man’s wishes.
The novel does make it clear the terrible place women found themselves in in 1940s-1950s Barcelona. There is compassion in there about the struggles and sacrifices made, and the quiet strength women had to have to survive that setting. Nuria shows resilience and agency by surviving against near impossible odds and at the expense of most facets of her life.4
But.
I can’t get into Penelope’s story without spilling details of the plot (she shows up later in the book and plays a big part in the central secret of the story), but she does nothing but exist, and a handful of men ruin her life physically, emotionally, and mentally for being attractive to one other man. There’s another aspect to her story that I can’t spell out here for similar reasons, but let’s leave it at this: rather than protect an innocent child unaware of her situation, the men in her life quite literally torture her for a male stranger’s actions.5
I’m not going to call Zafon a misogynist. I am going to say he has a lot to learn.
Memorable Quotes
As mentioned above, the writing here is gorgeous. I saved 11 quotes6 while reading. I’ll try to choose the best of those so you have some book left to read if you so choose.
A secret’s worth depends on the people from whom it must be kept.
This is the one that has stuck in my mind most of all, for some reason. It’s just so succinct yet resonant.
“…sometimes one feels freer speaking to a stranger than to people one knows. Why is that” I shrugged. “Probably because a stranger sees us the way we are, not as he wishes to think we are.”
You’re one of those people who fall off a tree and never quite reach the ground.
I have no idea what this means but I like it.
I lay on my bed with the light on, staring at my smart Montblanc pen, which hadn’t written anything for years - it was fast becoming the best pair of gloves ever given to someone with no hands.
Oh, Henry7
Julian once wrote that coincidences are the scars of fate.
Made me gasp when I first read it.
Last Thoughts
If you told me this was your favorite book, I’d have no problem believing you. It’s written sumptuously, and has quite a few memorable characters. The setting is dark and enticing. It’s a fine choice.
I didn’t like it. But that’s me. I couldn’t get over the glacial pacing, the limp female characters, or the romantic (in the old sense) tones where every emotion is the strongest one ever felt and everyone is either a best friend or a nemesis.
To quote Artemus Ward (Charles Farrar Browne)
For people who like that kind of thing, this is the kind of thing they like.
New Section! 1 star/5 star!
This is not an original idea with me, but I thought it would be fun to mine the depths of the internet for a 5 star review…and a 1 star review. First, the positive:
5 Stars
From Tanja on Goodreads:
The fact is that I’ll never be able to write a real review for this book. Here is why: I’m not good enough. I’m not now and I’ll never be.
Oh, don’t be so hard on yourself Tanja, I just did it, and I believe in you!
1 Star
Robin on Goodreads:
I know this book is widely beloved and is an international best seller. That’s a fact. What’s also a fact, is that it’s ridiculously melodramatic, unbelievable, and sickly-sentimental. I can’t stand the way it’s written. I’ll stop talking for a minute and let the writing say it all… “Undressing a woman for the first time is like peeling a hot sweet potato on a winter’s night”
Ok, so maybe not ALL of the prose is pretty.
Who Should Read This?
Rating
The Shadow Of The Wind has some delicious writing. It also plods along and has some weird takes on half the human population. I’m giving you 2.5 old books, and you better enjoy it.
Next Up
I’m not sure! Stick around for a surprise. Until then, keep reading.
Tiny spoiler, but Clara is blind, and Daniel (who is like 12 at the time) basically thinks “Sweet, she won’t know this is messed up.”
There’s a very disturbing rape scene where the woman in question allows it to happen willingly while whispering “I love you” to her attacker, to try and make him feel better about it.
Which she immediately abandons when a boy she doesn’t know shows up at her door and finds her attractive.
Stranger to her, known to them.
I usually save 2-3.
Bit of a literary joke for you there.
So many true comments re: women as we age. Too many men doing somewhat mean and hurtful things. Even today! Older women become “ invisible”