"The Shadow of the Wind" First Impressions "No Spoilers"

[Hank, Hankenstein's Modster]

Come talk about your initial, general impressions!

Please save all discussion of particulars, details from the story, character choices, plot questions, etc. for the full spoilers thread.

Content warnings for those who want them: (view spoiler)[ Police Brutality, Violence, Death, Domestic Abuse, Incest, Gun Violence,Torture, Child Abuse (hide spoiler)]

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[Bethan]

I've just started this, having had it on my tbr for ages.

First impression: A bit poetic, but as long as I can take my time reading, it could be interesting.

[Cynda Reads]

I read this novel last year, so I will not be rereading. I read it with my classics group, not with SFF which will read and understand differently. I am looking forward to everyone's comments.

[P.E.N.]

That “poetic” feeling is exactly what pulled me in at first too. It almost reads like a memory instead of a story, like you’re walking through something that already happened rather than discovering it for the first time.

If you take it slowly, it really rewards that pace. Curious to see how it shifts for you once the mystery starts tightening around the book itself.

[Bethan]

P.E.N. wrote: "If you take it slowly, it really rewards that pace."

That's good to know! I have several group reads in progress this month so juggling between them.

[P.E.N.]

Haha yeah, juggling multiple group reads can get chaotic fast.

That might actually work in your favor with this one though, coming back to it in pieces almost fits the way the story unfolds, like you're picking up fragments of something already lived.

Curious to see if it sticks with you over time or fades between the other reads.

[Valon]

I’m getting that same “poetic” feeling too.
It doesn’t feel like a story rushing forward, but more like something you slowly step into.

That kind of pacing either really works for you—or doesn’t—but so far, I’m enjoying just letting it unfold.

[Bethan]

I haven't got very far. I keep trying to read one more chapter every reading session and this one hasn't pulled me in enough to supercede my other reads.

[Nastia]

Feels very familiar—like déjà vu.

[aPriL does feral sometimes]

I read the book some time ago. I enjoyed the poetic language.

[Bonnie]

I am through the first two sections. Seems good so far. Feels like a more literary book with a complex shadowy world, not a thriller, not lots of action in the plot.

I had not heard of this before it was nominated for SFFBC. Many people must have though: many of my GR connections have read it, and it has many linked group discussions.

[Bonnie]

I was on the Virtual Book Club call yesterday. I thought someone mentioned choosing a translation.

This book isn't very old though, first published in 2001? That's not time enough; works of e.g. Goethe or Tolstoy or Dostoevsky have a dozen different translations (into English) to choose from. Is there another translation besides Lucia Graves' ? Maybe I misheard.

Hey! I just looked to see if Lucia Graves was known for translating other authors' works or writing her own. Her father was Robert Graves, the author of historical fiction novel I, Claudius and the World War I memoir Goodbye to All That !

[Catherine]

My library audio copy of the book finally came in yesterday. I started listening to it this morning, but I'm not impressed. The reader is doing a fine job, but the producers have included some background music at various points that I'm finding just annoying. I listen to audio books during my commute and at other times during the day as it gives me a way to read when I can't read a physical book. It's taking away from my enjoyment of the book. I'm also having a harder time getting into this book than other books. I'm not connecting with the characters.

[Becky]

Completely agree regarding the music. Very annoying and distracting to me, especially since it goes on for so long and kind of at random. I’ve listened to audiobooks with musical accompaniment, but it’s usually just over the title and between chapters, ending quickly once the reader starts. This seemed to go on forever!