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Tanta pasión para nada
Julio Llamazares regresa a un género al que aporta su particular mirada en doce relatos y una fábula. «Esta recopilación de cuentos comprende la mayoría de los que he escrito desde hace años. En una época como esta en la que los escaparates de la librerías están llenos de libros de autoayuda y de novelas de entretenimiento, el título quizá sorprenda, pero hace honor a su contenido. Y a mi tradición En mitad de ninguna parte, En Babia, El río del olvido, Nadie escucha ? Un jugador de fútbol que se enfrenta al momento más decisivo de su carrera, un viejo napolitano que reencuentra al amor de su juventud antes de morir, un pobre hombre que quiere parar el mundo, un conductor que desaparece, una mujer que desvela el gran secreto de su existencia cuando ya es tarde? Los protagonistas de estos relatos son muy distintos, pero todos comparten la misma extraña descubrir que la vida es una pasión inútil. Una pasión de la que forma parte el arte de escribir y de contar, que va unido al de leer y al de pensar, y que nos permite seguir viendo pese a que conozcamos su inutilidad». JULIO LLAMAZARES
160 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2011
4 people are currently reading
43 people want to read
About the author
Julio Llamazares
60 books168 followersJulio Llamazares was born in Vegamián, a small village in the region of León. At the age of twelve he left the mountain area, attended a boarding school in Madrid and then studied law. Today Llamazares works as a writer, journalist and scriptwriter.
After two poetry volumes which were published under the titles of 'La lentitud de los bueyes' (1979) and 'Memoria de la nieve' (1982), his successful debut as a novel writer came out in 1985 'Luna de lobos'.
Llamazares had his literary breakthrough with the novel 'La lluvia amarilla' in 1988. The novel is about Andrés, an old man who is the last inhabitant of a forsaken village in the Pyrenees. Andrés reminds the former vitality of this place and contemplates about forgetting, death, and loneliness. With the story of the dying village, Llamazares has depicted a concise development of Spanish society in a bribingly direct speech. Hundreds of villages have disappeared in the last decades because the inhabitants have moved to the cities. In the first three years after its publication, 'La lluvia amarilla' was already re-published 15 times.
In the autobiographical novel 'Escenas de cine mudo' (1994), the narrator returns to Olleros, the place of his childhood. After the death of his mother he finds a photo album with old black and white photos. With the help of the yellowed photos he goes back to his past and describes, in loosely connected scenes, his experiences from the view of a child, thus bestowing an insight into the social history of the region.
Llamazares holds a special place in Spanish contemporary literature. He belongs to the few authors who concern themselves with rural Spain, the remote areas and the decline of damned mountain villages. With his unassuming and convincingly told stories of everyday life, he plays a large part in the existence of this world not being forgotten in the general frenzy of modernization.
Llamazares has published collections of stories, such as 'En mitad de ninguna parte' (1981) and chronicles ('El Entierro de Genarin', 1998). Furthermore, he edited an Anthology about the city of Madrid, which came out as 'Los viajeros de Madrid' in 1998. Articles he wrote as a journalist are collected in 'En Babia' (1991) and 'Nadie escucha' (1995). Llamazares’ travel reports about forgotten regions and districts were published as 'El río del ovido' (1990) and 'Trás-os-Montes' (1998). He also wrote filmscripts and extended reportages – among these, one about Berlin. Recently, his novel "El cielo de Madrid" (2005) was published. The author lives in Madrid and León.
After two poetry volumes which were published under the titles of 'La lentitud de los bueyes' (1979) and 'Memoria de la nieve' (1982), his successful debut as a novel writer came out in 1985 'Luna de lobos'.
Llamazares had his literary breakthrough with the novel 'La lluvia amarilla' in 1988. The novel is about Andrés, an old man who is the last inhabitant of a forsaken village in the Pyrenees. Andrés reminds the former vitality of this place and contemplates about forgetting, death, and loneliness. With the story of the dying village, Llamazares has depicted a concise development of Spanish society in a bribingly direct speech. Hundreds of villages have disappeared in the last decades because the inhabitants have moved to the cities. In the first three years after its publication, 'La lluvia amarilla' was already re-published 15 times.
In the autobiographical novel 'Escenas de cine mudo' (1994), the narrator returns to Olleros, the place of his childhood. After the death of his mother he finds a photo album with old black and white photos. With the help of the yellowed photos he goes back to his past and describes, in loosely connected scenes, his experiences from the view of a child, thus bestowing an insight into the social history of the region.
Llamazares holds a special place in Spanish contemporary literature. He belongs to the few authors who concern themselves with rural Spain, the remote areas and the decline of damned mountain villages. With his unassuming and convincingly told stories of everyday life, he plays a large part in the existence of this world not being forgotten in the general frenzy of modernization.
Llamazares has published collections of stories, such as 'En mitad de ninguna parte' (1981) and chronicles ('El Entierro de Genarin', 1998). Furthermore, he edited an Anthology about the city of Madrid, which came out as 'Los viajeros de Madrid' in 1998. Articles he wrote as a journalist are collected in 'En Babia' (1991) and 'Nadie escucha' (1995). Llamazares’ travel reports about forgotten regions and districts were published as 'El río del ovido' (1990) and 'Trás-os-Montes' (1998). He also wrote filmscripts and extended reportages – among these, one about Berlin. Recently, his novel "El cielo de Madrid" (2005) was published. The author lives in Madrid and León.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
May 21, 2025
Doce relatos y una fábula del escritor leonés que destacan por su exacerbado pesimismo, casi una impronta o sesgo del carácter introspectivo de la zona que ha calado en el autor. No se trata de un pesimismo patológico, sino más bien de una actitud cautelosa y realista, que puede manifestarse en una cierta dificultad para expresar abiertamente emociones o sentimientos. Llamazares resuelve situaciones vitales muy duras con una pequeña mueca de ironía. El resultado es una prosa poética muy cuidada, deliberadamente lenta y sosegada.
August 6, 2025
En estos cuentos se desarrollan las obsesiones/intereses del autor con mayor o menor éxito dependiendo del relato.
Se recogen historias peculiares de una España ya desaparecida y situaciones vitales desesperadas con apariencia de normalidad.
Su prosa es sencilla y se deja ver que el cuento no es el género predilecto del autor y por esto mismo tal vez no se esfuerza más en su acabado.
De todas formas vale la pena leerlos por su honestidad, su compromiso social y la recuperación de una memoria prácticamente extinta.
Se recogen historias peculiares de una España ya desaparecida y situaciones vitales desesperadas con apariencia de normalidad.
Su prosa es sencilla y se deja ver que el cuento no es el género predilecto del autor y por esto mismo tal vez no se esfuerza más en su acabado.
De todas formas vale la pena leerlos por su honestidad, su compromiso social y la recuperación de una memoria prácticamente extinta.
April 19, 2020
No lo he acabado
August 7, 2015
Varios cuentos que te dejaban queriendo más, y el título del libro encaja perfectamente con el desenlace de los cuentos, hubieron unos cuentos que me gustaron más que otros, buen libro para pasar un fin de semana leyendo.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews