The Time of the Doves (La Plaza del Diamante) (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The most beautiful novel published in Spain since the Civil War."—Gabriel García Márquez

"Mercè Rodoreda is the writer I cannot stop talking about."—Alberto Ríos

"[I] read [The Time of the Doves] cover to cover all in one afternoon. When I was finished, I felt as foolish as Balboa discovering the powerful Pacific."—Sandra Cisneros, from her Foreword to Camilla Street
-- Review

"To me a cork was like a stopper...I was like a cork myself. Not because I was born that way but because I had to be. And to make my heart like stone. I had to be like a cork to keep going because if instead of being a cork with a heart of stone I'd been like before, made of flesh that hurts when you pinch it, I'd never have gotten across such a high, narrow, long bridge." Natalia is a young woman living in a small village in Spain without a mother to give her advice. At a dance in the plaza she meets Quimet, with his "gleaming monkey eyes," who convinces her to reject her fiance and marry him. Her decision marks the beginning a life of toil for Natalia which continues through two children, the Spanish Civil War, Quimet's death, a second marriage, and finally into a feeling of rest. Told through Natalia's stream of consciousness, the novel is filled with precise observations, magical ramblings, exquisite metaphors, and a feeling as rushed, rippling, and languorous as a river running a long course. Merce Rodoreda was twenty-six and just gaining recognition as an important author when Franco took power and repressed the Catalan language; she went into exile and did not write again for twenty years. The Time of the Doves, written when she was fifty-three, is a stunning recreation of both a Spanish history and the life of one hard-working woman. -- For great reviews of books for girls, check out Let's Hear It for the Girls: 375 Great Books for Readers 2-14. -- From 500 Great Books by Women; review by Erica Bauermeister

Review

"The most beautiful novel published in Spain since the Civil War."—Gabriel García Márquez"Mercè Rodoreda is the writer I cannot stop talking about."—Alberto Ríos"[I] read [The Time of the Doves] cover to cover all in one afternoon. When I was finished, I felt as foolish as Balboa discovering the powerful Pacific."—Sandra Cisneros, from her Foreword to Camilla Street

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Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Graywolf Press (October 1, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0915308754
• ISBN-13: 978-0915308750
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #236,019 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars La Plaça del Diamant, May 9, 2003

By	Judith Cerda Belmonte (Zurich, Switzerland) - See all my reviews

In my opinion, this is one of the most tender and at the same time hard book written in the 20th century in Catalonia. It mixes love, passion, deep feelings among one of the most difficults times that we Catalans have lived and we still live: the represion in all senses of the Spanish Kingdom.

I would like to suggest to Amanzon, a shop that sells culture, to respect the Catalan culture and not to translate the Catalan book titles into Spanish. The title of this book is "La Plaça del Diamant" (Catalan) and not "La Plaza del Diamante" (Spanish) I am absolutly sure that Merce Rodoreda, a woman who lived the repression on the Spanish for writing, thinking and expressing herself as a Catalan, would appreciate a lot that you keep her titles as they are in bweten brackets: in Catalan.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and simple, June 15, 2002

By	"cindersct" (Barcelona via Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The time of the doves: A novel (Hardcover)

Why it is not called Placa del Diamant in the English translation, I don't know. But the Time of the Doves is a beautifully written tale of hope in a hopeless time; of survival and the power of love (pardon the cliche). It is simplistic because it can be while still communicating these themes effectively, through the mind of the heroine, Natalia.

I first read this book and Rodoreda's other full-length novel, Camellia Street (now out of print in English), when I visited Barcelona three years ago, to give me a sense of place. Now that I live only four blocks from Placa del Diamant, I have re-read them both with the same pleasure. The statute there of Natalia fleeing the doves and the hold of her husband, serves to bring me back to this rich story.

I challenge a history book to provide a reader with a stronger sense of what Spain was actually like during the civil war and the desperation of the Catalan people.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A simple life, wrought beautifully..., March 25, 2000

By	Eric Brotheridge (Indianapolis, IN USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The imagery in this book astounded me: it was fresh and new, very different from anything else I have found in books. My love of Willa Cather eventually led me to this book of Rodoreda's. Like Cather, Rodoreda's language is simple and wonderfully written, her characters are unique and the plot is so subtle.

I enjoyed how the passage of time is explored in the main character's life; from early womanhood through the ordeal of marriage and family to a quiet ecstasy of full maturity. While place plays a very important part in this novel, the setting transcends Barcelona. I sensed the history surronding the characters in the novel yet realized that this story could be set anywhere. I recommend this book for Cather-lovers and those who enjoy a book of the passage of time.