The Shadow of the Wind

It's very hard to categorize this book. There are some fantastical elements, but it reads like historical fiction. It's a mystery with a love story at its core, more than one, maybe. The story is set in 1930s Barcelona, a time and place of unrest that is generally just glossed over in American history books right before the WWII chapter. Learning about the time period and how the characters existed in it was interesting in its own right. Then, you meet the characters, each hiding a myriad of secrets that unfold slowly as the pages turn. There's Fermin, the homeless man of a thousand faces and pieces of wisdom. There's the brutal inspector who has changed his coat so many times no one knows whose side he is on. Everyone is complex and interesting, down to the neighbors who only appear for a few sentences a chapter.

It's also a story about books, about how books give people life and bind people together. About how stories teach us about our own lives as we search for ourselves within the pages. I think that's the theme that resonated most with me. The protagonist, Daniel, begins the story by finding a book and then watches as his search for the author slowly turns into a mirror of the author's life, characters weaving in and out between both reader and writer's stories.

I really think most people could find something to enjoy in this book, especially if you already love books themselves. That's the final recommendation, I suppose. If you like books, you'll probably like this book.