Barcelona hosts immersive experience to mark 25 years of 'The Shadow of the Wind'

The universe of Carlos Ruiz Zafón arrived at Barcelona's Recinte Modernista de Sant Pau, as a select group of fans, journalists and influencers gathered to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the novel 'The Shadow of the Wind'.

The book, the first in the four-part series 'Cemetery of Forgotten Books', weaves a complex and compelling story centered on books and those who love them, an intrigue that unfolds across the entire saga.

To coincide with the anniversary, the publisher, Grupo 62, has released a new edition of the novel aimed at younger readers, and organized an immersive experience designed to bring the Barcelona-born author's literary universe to life.

The event transformed the art nouveau-style buildings into the mysterious 'Cemetery of Forgotten Books,' a fictional library at the heart of Zafón's saga. 

Guided by the cemetery's enigmatic keeper, about 60 participants were drawn into an interactive story, solving challenges while reflecting on their relationship with literature.

Visitors took part in a literary game centered on a cursed author, uncovering fragments of the narrative as they moved through the space. Divided into six teams and equipped with tablets, participants engaged with questions about characters, excerpts from the novel, and the historical and architectural features of the art nouveau complex.

The experience also evoked Barcelona's postwar past, highlighting themes of silence, memory, and forgotten stories that run throughout Zafón's work.

One of the most anticipated moments came in the underground corridors, where the story reached its darkest point. There, the keeper revealed the final pieces of the cursed author's tale before granting participants access to the cemetery itself.

The experience concluded with the unveiling of the first copy of the new edition of 'The Shadow of the Wind', alongside a reminder of the saga's central idea: in the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, readers do not choose books; books choose their readers.

Carlos Ruiz Zafón's editor Emili Rosales described both the game and the new edition as a tribute to books and reading. He called the 'Cemetery of Forgotten Books' an "iconic" space within Zafón's literary world.

Rosales also highlighted the novel's lasting impact, noting that 25 years after publication it remains one of the most-read works originally in Spanish, second only to Cervantes' 'Don Quixote.' 'Shadow of the Wind' has been translated into more than 50 languages and continues to be reissued worldwide.

Ruiz Zafón died at 55 in June 2020. He is globally the best-selling Catalan author. The writer's literary universe was further expanded with 'The City of Steam', a posthumous collection of short stories that revisits characters and themes of the 'Cemetery of Forgotten Books'.

According to Rosales, the new edition of 'Shadow of the Wind' is expected to resonate especially with readers drawn to gothic and romantic storytelling, as well as contemporary classics.

He added that the immersive experience not only explores the novel's themes but also invites visitors to discover the richness of Recinte Modernista de Sant Pau's architecture.

"It is both a literary and an architectural journey," Rosales said, adding that the initiative aimed to rekindle the joy of reading Zafón's works while honoring the legacy of the author.