Barcelona Dreaming
Ratings2
Average rating3.5
15
Ratings2
Average rating3.5
Set on the eve of the financial crash of 2008, Barcelona Dreaming is made up of three stories that are linked by time and place, and also by the moving, unexpected interactions of a rich cast of characters. The stories are narrated, in turn, by an English woman who runs a gift shop, an alcoholic jazz pianist, and a translator tormented by unrequited love, all of whose lives will be changed forever. Underpinning the novel, and casting a long shadow, is a crime committed against a young Moroccan immigrant. Exploring themes of addiction, racism, celebrity, immigration, and self-delusion, and fuelled by a longing for the unattainable and a nostalgia for what is about to be lost, Barcelona Dreaming is a love letter to one of the world's most beautiful cities and a powerful and poignant fable for our uncertain times.
Reviews with the most likes.
Not mind-blowing, not terrible. A little bit hard to believe at times, and hard to relate to unless you are among the wealthy inhabitants of Barcelona. It touched [extremely] lightly on being undocumented in the city, women's safety, and alcoholism but it in a way that did not seem to be drawn from personal experience or connection.
