Carlos Ruiz Zafon.
The Hispanic literary world got up in mourning today, Friday, June 19, 2020, after the news of the unfortunate death of Carlos Ruiz Zafón was announced. The author of bestseller The wind's shadow He died at the young age of 55, a victim of cancer. The official information was released by the Planeta publishing house.
At present, the writer was residing in Los Angeles. There, he dedicated himself to his passion, fully committed to the Hollywood industry. The news has devastated Spain, his native country, in one of the most difficult times that the land of Cervantes has lived through due to Covid-19.
Carlos Ruiz Zafón, among the best contemporary authors
The arrival, The Prince of Mist (1993)
Zafón earned himself an honorable position on the world literary scene in no time. After the publication of The Prince of Mist, in 1993, critics predicted a splendid career, and so it was. Despite being his first work, this was very well received, a luck that does not touch everyone. In fact, this book earned him the Edebé award in its Youth Literature category. They followed that post: The palace of midnight and the lights of September, and with the latter he closed what was his first formal trilogy.
The early consecration, The wind's shadow (2001)
However, and looking for more -quality that characterized him throughout his life-, in 2001 he jumped to the international arena with his work The wind's shadow. The accolades were immediate and were counted by the thousands. María Lucía Hernández, on the portal of The nation, commented:
"It handles suspense and the 'surprise factor' in an exceptional way, without ceasing to be credible, since it is concerned with including the typical Spanish customs and historical events of the second postwar period."
Gonzalo Navajas, for his part, stated:
"The wind's shadow It had become, due to its unusual international reception, a hypertext in which […] contemporary Spanish culture was projected and found an echo in the international context ”.
The wind's shadow and its deep mark in Germany
And yes, the book was a total success, not only in sales, but also in its cross-cultural reach. In Germany, for example, the work arrived in mid-2003. In less than two and a half years there were already more than a million copies sold. A considerable achievement for Hispanic literature, especially considering the time in which it occurred. We are talking about a thousand copies a day in that period, an aspect that, taking into account that the writer was almost unknown at that time, is considered applaudable.
On the other hand, the impact on the German reading public was also great. The text was considered "entertaining" on the pages of the Neue Zuricher Zeitungse, at the same time that it was considered "rather simple" thematic. The truth is Zafón's footprint remained, and it could still be seen in those lands.
Quote by Carlos Ruiz Zafón.
The tetralogy, its closure with a flourish
One thing inevitably led to another and after 15 years —with a long pause to enjoy the honeys of the success of The wind's shadow-, the three titles that would give the final shape to the story emerged:
- The game of the angel (2008).
- The Prisoner of Heaven (2011)
- The labyrinth of spirits (2015)
Authors are often your worst critics —And it is not that Zafón escaped from that, we are talking about a millimeter writer and demanding with himself. However, after putting the last point to The labyrinth of spirits, Carlos said that the play was "exactly what it had to be." Each piece, then, coincided as it should, and was meticulously placed by means of the devices of an author committed to his work and aware of his honorable role as a literary representative of Spain.
A great one has gone, and a great work remains behind its shadow in the wind
The passion for trades, it shows: it is pleasant, attractive, shines uncontrollably, illuminates everything it touches. Yes there are an adjective with which to describe Carlos Ruiz Zafón regarding his work as a writer, that is that of a passionate man of letters.
He left early, but he took advantage of every second to achieve immortality in the work he did. This is indicated by the forty translations, the more than 10 million books sold, and their international impact. Yes, he left the plane, but he has not arrived and will not populate the rooms of oblivion.