Fall Reading

     When people equate a season with reading, usually that season is summer. Everyone's always talking about the best beach reads. Personally, I find it harder to find time to read in the summer. The nice weather drives me outside, where I like to enjoy my friends, city festivals, and just the great outdoors. I think there is so much  to do in the summer, which leaves me less time for reading. I think winter reading is great. Imagine the snow coming down, and you don't feel like driving anywhere. What a great time to curl up with a  book, and travel somewhere else, where the climate isn't quite as cold or snowy. Books can be a vacation from the real world outside, and I have a book for you that would be perfect for some fall reading.
     One of the genres, or subject, of books I've always enjoyed are books about books. I'm enthralled in stories involving missing manuscripts and dusty old bookshops. Today my recommendation is The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. The first line starts "I still remember the day my father took me to the cemetary of the Forgotten Books for the first time. It was the early summer of 1945, and we walked through the streets of Barcelona trapped beneath ashen skies as dawn poured over Rambla de Santa Monica in a wreath of liquid copper."  Doesn't that suck you right in? Zafon transports us to Barcelona, shortly after WWII. The story is told by Daniel, a young boy who discovers a novel called The Shadow of the Wind. The author of the novel (within the novel) is Julian Carax, and supposedly some mysterious figure is going about and destroying the few remaining copies of  Carax's work. This historical novel has some mystery, magic, and a bit of fun. Shadow was originally published in Spanish, but this is something you wouldn't know just by reading the text. It flows, and quite beautifully at times. This book is a big international bestseller, and it definitely lives up to all the praise.
     I originally read this for a book club, and  everyone in the group really enjoyed it. If you do read Shadow, there is a sort of prequel out, The Angel's Game, which I myself haven't gotten to just yet. I hope to get to it soon, and will keep you updated. So not planning any trips in the near future? Take a trip back to '50's in Spain, and enjoy the ride. Happy reading.