The Time of the Doves explained

The Time Of The Doves (also translated as The Pigeon Girl or In Diamond Square;^[1] original Catalan-language: La plaça del Diamant, that is Diamond Square) is a 1962 novel written by exiled Catalan writer Mercè Rodoreda.

The book is named after a in Barcelona's Gràcia district. It is featured in Harold Bloom's The Western Canon as part of a list of canonical books of the "Chaotic Age".^[2] Arguably the author's most accomplished work, the novel has been translated into more than thirty languages^[3] and is regarded as one of the most important pieces of fiction in contemporary Catalan literature. It is also a staple of the curriculum in secondary school programs across Catalonia.

Set in Barcelona during the Second Spanish Republic and the Spanish Civil War, the novel pictures a young woman, Natalia (nicknamed Colometa, the Pigeon Girl^[4]), and her struggles in life^[5] as well as her relationships with two men: Quimet, her first husband, who dies in the war; and Antoni, her second husband. It is also a chronicle of life in the city at the time, in a balanced mixture of psychologism and naturalism.

Adaptations

It was made into a film in 1982 directed by Francesc Betriu,^[6] and has spawned several theatrical adaptations, including a play directed by Joan Ollé in 2004^{[7] [8]} and another in 2007 adapted by Josep M. Benet i Jornet.^[9]

English translations

• The Pigeon Girl. Translated by Eda O'Shiel. London: André Deutsch, 1967.^[10]
• The Time Of The Doves. Translated by David H. Rosenthal. New York: Taplinger Publishing Company, 1980.^{[11] [12]}
• In Diamond Square. Translated by Peter Bush. London: Virago Press Ltd, 2013.

See also

• Catalan literature

External links

• Qüestionari del llibre (material didàctic)
• Resum de l'obra per Sara Bailac
• Informació sobre l'adaptació teatral de l'obra al TNC (web del TNC)
• Informació sobre l'adapatació de l'obra al TNC (web de l'Ajuntament de Barcelona)
• Reflexió sobre l'obra per part de Carme Arnau a PENcatala.cat
• Apunts sobre l'obra - Rincón del Vago
• La Plaça del Diamant real amb l'escultura de la Colometa
• Any Rodoreda 1908-2008

Notes and References

1. Web site: 2021-11-20 . Catalan literature: capturing the interest of UK readers and publishers . 2024-02-19 . El Nacional . en.
2. Web site: Mercè Rodoreda Autor LibraryThing . 2024-02-19 . LibraryThing.com . ca.
3. Real . Neus . 2021 . Mercè Rodoreda, the most translated author in Catalan fiction . Catalan Historical Review . en . 14 . 89–103 . 2013-4088.
4. Web site: Eaude . Michael . 2013-04-01 . In Diamond Square . 2024-02-19 . Barcelona Metropolitan . en-us.
5. Web site: Hartas . Tina . 2022-10-07 . Novel set in 1930s BARCELONA . 2024-02-19 . TripFiction . en.
6. News: Marti . Octavi . 1982-10-19 . 'La plaza del Diamante' ganó el primer premio de la Semana de Cine de Barcelona . 2024-02-19 . El País . es . 1134-6582.
7. Web site: 324cat . 2004-08-09 . La novel·la de Rodoreda "La plaça del Diamant" en versió teatral arriba als escenaris . 2024-02-19 . CCMA . ca.
8. Web site: Taulé . Oriol Puig . 2023-10-06 . ‘La plaça del Diamant’: todas somos Colometa . 2024-02-19 . El País . es.
9. Web site: 2007-11-07 . 'La plaça del Diamant', adaptada por Benet i Jornet, llega al TNC . 2024-02-19 . La Vanguardia . es.
10. Web site: Acn . 2013-04-01 . 45 lliures esterlines per la primera traducció a l'anglès de 'La plaça del Diamant' . 2024-02-19 . Ara.cat . ca.
11. Web site: Ferrerós . Joan . Rosenthal i la valquíria - 05 juliol 2022 . 2024-02-19 . El Punt Avui . ca.
12. La plaça del Diamant (1962) - Works at lletrA - Catalan literature online . Universitat Oberta de Catalunya . en.