Now that it is more difficult for us to travel, books allow us to forget about borders and barriers and travel freely to other countries and worlds.
If you are a Spanish student, we recommend you, in addition to watching movies, reading books in the original version. It is the best way to learn vocabulary but also to get to know the Spanish and Latin American culture better.
If you are a beginner, you can start with books for teenagers or directly with novels, if you are more advanced. It might be a bit tiring at first as reading in a language that is not your own is much more complicated and requires a lot more energy and concentration, but you will gradually get used to it and the same pleasure you feel when reading in your idiom.
If you are a bit scared to start reading in Spanish, we recommend reading a book that you have already read in your language, it will help you understand more easily but it will also give you more confidence to continue reading in Spanish.
So, prepare yourself a hot drink and sit down comfortably, we are going to invite you to travel with our selection of favorite books, of course, to read in Spanish.
Don Quixote de la Mancha by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra.
To begin with, how not to talk about "Don Quixote" - a key work of Spanish literature and one of the most widely read and studied books in the world.
The work is divided into two parts: The one about the ingenious gentleman Don Quixote de la Mancha and The second part about the ingenious gentleman Don Quixote de la Mancha. It was written by Cervantes during one of his periods of imprisonment.
This work is quite long and complex, which is why it is recommended for advanced students, but if you like literature, you will love it. By reading it, you will understand why after 500 years we continue reading and enjoying this book so much.
It tells the story of a poor hidalgo, Alonso Quijano, passionate about gentleman's novels since they allowed him to escape from reality. The magic of the books is such that he ends up convinced that he is really a knight and decides to call himself Don Quixote of La Mancha with a mission: Protect widows and orphans like every knight.
It is considered the first modern novel and although it was considered humorous on its publication, it is now without a doubt a classic and an incisive satire.
Let me tell you - Jorge Burcay.
It is an Argentine novel and one of my favorite books. It is very easy to read as there are a lot of dialogues.
It tells the story of Demián, a man who is very worried and very stressed by life, with many questions about the world but more than anything about himself. To try to sort out his life a bit and better understand his own reactions, he goes to see Jorge, a very peculiar psychoanalyst who, like many psychoanalysts, has a very personal way of making you answer your same questions.
Every day he will tell you a story, some anecdotes with other patients, and other stories. At first Demián doesn't understand the process very well, but little by little he finds out that each story teaches him a lesson and he lets himself go, turning his life around.
I really like this book because the author, in a subtle way, manages, as he does with his patients, to make us think about our own lives, about our own actions and their consequences and above all it helps us to improve as people.
The house of the spirits – Isabel Allende.
Many know this first novel by the Chilean writer Isabel Allende thanks to the film with Antonio Banderas and Meryl Streep.
The story is that of the Trueba del Valle family and is quite focused on women- very powerful characters in the novel. It is very much based on the relationships between family members (between sisters, parents/children, grandchildren/grandparents) over 4 generations through very happy and very tragic events.
We love being able to follow the evolution of the characters throughout their lives like the great family sagas. Although the story has magical elements (Clara, one of the protagonists has supernatural powers) the novel is part of the Chilean political reality of the XNUMXth century, belonging to the genre of "magical realism." It is a very deep and exciting novel with some touches of violence.
Isabel Allende has a very soft yet intense way of writing that we love.
While we are young – José Luis Correa.
For us, it is one of the best Spanish black novels, full of suspense.
This is the case of the murder of a young student in Las Palmas. Ricardo Blanco, the protagonist, has to defend the murder suspect. But as he advances his investigation, he doesn't quite know if his client is innocent or not and if he should defend him. How in many stories of this style, things are always very different from what they seem. What we like most about this book is that you can follow the investigation step by step, not only as a spectator but also as an actor. It lets you search for answers to your own questions and have your own opinion.
The author has this talent to manipulate you and you won't stop surprising yourself, changing your mind as many times as the detective does. You will realize that there can be many truths, depending on who tells you.
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas - John Boyne.
This last book is not Spanish since it was written by the Irish author John Boyne but it was very successful in Spain and you can find it in Spanish without any difficulty.
We wanted to put it on our list of favorite books because it moved us and had a huge impact on us.
The story is told by an 8-year-old boy, Bruno. He lives with his family in Berlin, his father is in the military. Bruno, with all the innocence of his age, does not understand the situation in his country and the true work of his father. One day, his father's boss, a certain Adolf Hitler, entrusts Bruno's father with a very important mission: he will be the Director of the Auschwitz Camp.
Throughout the book, Bruno tells us his story seen from his innocent eyes, without really understanding the reality of the situation, but aware - without knowing how to explain why - that something horrible is happening in Auschwitz.
You will meet very special people on both sides of the fence.
What we liked in this novel is living the story through Bruno's perception. You will understand some things that Bruno cannot understand or imagine. You will realize the innocence of the child, what a good person he is and the importance of friendship.
We hope you like our selection of books.
At Lacunza IH we have a library with books that you can read during your stay at home and we have many recommendations for bookstores in San Sebastián.
