The Barga Book Club enthusiastically welcomed many members of the Lucca Book Club to their meeting this month in the elegant surroundings of the Hotel Villa Moorings for a lively discussion of The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafòn.
Elisabeth Marseglia opened the discussion with her thoughts on the story’s rendering in translation. As reflected by others, she felt there were some things lost in translation, but overall the translator’s difficult job was executed satisfactorily if not colorfully. Citing examples such as the impact of the image of ‘bloodless shadow’ substituted with ‘spidery shadow’ or the gravitas of ‘dragging his spirit and his feet’ with the simplified ‘dragging his feet,’ Elisabeth represented what was missing in the tenor and import of the language.
The strength of the storytelling was in character development, with vivid and lucid descriptions of a diverse and colorful, almost Dickinsian, cast of characters. The other strength was in the descriptive quality of the setting in which the reader was transported onto the broad boulevards or narrow alleys and into stately mansions or seedy apartments of post war Barcelona.
While at times, in the opinion of some readers, the book seemed superficial and more like a young adult caper, Elisabeth and others emphasized the apparent political and cultural ironies of the post war period, the Spanish civil war and Franco’s regime, which at times bordered on satire. The reader whose historical grasp of the period was informed could read between the lines and glean greater understanding of the author’s intent.
Hidden in the heart of the old city of Barcelona is the ‘cemetery of lost books’, a labyrinthine library of obscure and forgotten titles that have long gone out of print. To this library, a man brings his 10-year-old son Daniel one cold morning in 1945. Daniel is allowed to choose one book from the shelves and pulls out LA SOMBRA DEL VIENTO by Julian Carax.
But as he grows up, several people seem inordinately interested in his find. Then, one night, as he is wandering the old streets once more, Daniel is approached by a figure who reminds him of a character from LA SOMBRA DEL VIENTO, a character who turns out to be the devil. This man is tracking down every last copy of Carax’s work in order to burn them. What begins as a case of literary curiosity turns into a race to find out the truth behind the life and death of Julian Carax and to save those he left behind. A page-turning exploration of obsession in literature and love, and the places that obsession can lead. – source – http://www.carlosruizzafon.co.uk
Thanks very much to Carolyn Slater and the members of the Lucca Book Club for joining us and contributing to this interesting interchange and we look forward to meeting you all again.
The members of the Lucca Book Club have recommended the following books which have been added to our reading list. (click on the link to the right of this blog post)
Slaughterhouse-Five Kurt Vonnegut
Scoop Evelyn Waugh
Disgrace J. M. Coetzee
The Citadel A. J. Cronin
We Need to Talk About Kevin Lionel Shriver
The Dig John Preston
The book which has been chosen for the October meeting is The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery.
Thank you to everyone of the Barga Book Club who participated and we look forward to seeing you next month.