Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Carlos Ruiz Zafón, Barcelona
Born Carlos Ruiz Zafón
25 September 1964
Language Spanish
Period 1993–present
This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Ruiz and the second or maternal family name is Zafón.

Carlos Ruiz Zafón Spanish: ['karlos 'rwiθ θa'fon] (born Barcelona, 25 September 1964) is a Spanish novelist.

Career

Ruiz Zafón's first novel, El Príncipe de la Niebla (The Prince of Mist, 1993), earned the Edebé literary prize for young adult fiction. He is also the author of three more young adult novels, El palacio de la medianoche (1994), Las luces de septiembre (1995) and Marina (1999). The English version of El Príncipe de la Niebla was published in 2010.

In 2001 he published his first adult novel La sombra del viento (The Shadow of the Wind), a mystery that involves Daniel Sempere's quest to track down the man responsible for destroying every book written by author Julian Carax. The novel has sold millions of copies worldwide and more than a million copies in the UK alone. Since its publication, La sombra del viento has garnered critical acclaim around the world and has won many international awards. Ruiz Zafón's next novel, El juego del ángel, was published in April 2008. The English edition, The Angel's Game, is translated by Lucia Graves, daughter of the poet Robert Graves. It is a prequel to The Shadow of the Wind, also set in Barcelona, but during the 1920s and 1930s. It follows (and is narrated by) David Martin, a young writer who is approached by a mysterious figure to write a book. Ruiz Zafón intends it to be included in a four book series along with The Shadow of the Wind.[1] The next book in the cycle, El prisionero del cielo, appeared in 2011, which returns to The Shadow of the Wind's Daniel Sempere and his travel back to the 1940s to resolve a buried secret. The novel was published in English in July 2012 as The Prisoner of Heaven.[2]

Ruiz Zafón's works have been published in 45 countries and have been translated into more than 40 different languages.[3] According to these figures, Ruiz Zafón is the most widely published contemporary Spanish writer, followed by Javier Sierra, whose works have been published in 42 countries, and Juan Gómez-Jurado, whose works have been published in 41 countries.

Bibliography

Young adult

Novels

Carlos Ruiz Zafón talks about The Angel's Game on Bookbits radio.

Short stories

Influences

Influences on Ruiz Zafón's work have included 19th century classics, crime fiction,[6] noir authors and contemporary writers.

Apart from books, another large influence comes in the form of films and screenwriting. He says in interviews that he finds it easier to visualize scenes in his books in a cinematic way, which lends itself to the lush worlds and curious characters he creates.[1]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Porter, Steve. "Books hold no passports – Carlos Ruiz Zafon talks to Three Monkeys Online". TMO Magazine.
  2. ↑ "The Prisoner of Heaven (El cementerio de los libros olvidados #3)". goodreads.com. Retrieved 2012-06-05.
  3. ↑ "about the author" in The Prisoner of Heaven, Orion edition (2012)
  4. ↑ London: Orion. ISBN 978-1-4440-0165-5
  5. ↑ http://cultivatingthought.com/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/
  6. ↑ Zafon discusses crime writers as an influence on his work

External links

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