Carlos Ruiz Zafón


Carlos Ruiz Zafón was a Spanish novelist best known for his 2001 novel La sombra del viento.

Biography

Ruiz Zafón was born in the city of Barcelona. Growing up in Spain, he began his working life by making money in advertising. His grandparents had worked in a factory and his father sold insurance. In the 1990s Ruiz Zafón moved to Los Angeles where he worked briefly in screen writing. He was fluent in English.
On 19 June 2020, at the age of 55, Ruiz Zafón died of colorectal cancer in Los Angeles.

Literary career

Ruiz Zafón's first novel, El príncipe de la niebla 1993, earned the Edebé literary prize for young adult fiction. He is also the author of three additional young adult novels, El palacio de la medianoche, Las luces de septiembre and Marina.
In 2001 he published his first adult novel La sombra del viento, a Gothic 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, was also translated by Lucia Graves. It is a prequel to The Shadow of the Wind, also set in Barcelona, but during the 1920s and 1930s. It follows David Martín, a young writer who is approached by a mysterious figure to write a book. Ruiz Zafón intended it to be included in a four-book series along with The Shadow of the Wind.
The next book in the cycle, El prisionero del cielo, appeared in 2011. It 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.
The Labyrinth of Spirits is the fourth and final book in the Cemetery of Forgotten Books series. The novel was initially released on 17 November 2016 in Spain and Latin America by Spanish publisher Planeta. HarperCollins published the English translation by Lucia Graves, which was released on 18 September 2018.
Carlos Ruiz Zafón's works have been published in 45 countries and have been translated into more than 40 different languages. 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.

Young adult

El cementerio de los libros olvidados series
Influences on Ruiz Zafón's work have included 19th century classics, crime fiction, noir authors and contemporary writers.
Apart from books, another large influence comes in the form of films and screenwriting. He said in interviews that he found it easier to visualize scenes in his books in a cinematic way, which lends itself to the lush worlds and curious characters he created.

Awards and honors