The Time of the Doves

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 Time of the Doves

The book is named after a square [ca; es] 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.^{[citation needed]}

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,^[5] in a balanced mixture of psychologism and naturalism.^{[citation needed]}

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.^[1]

See also

• Catalan literature

References

1. "Catalan literature: capturing the interest of UK readers and publishers". El Nacional. 2021-11-20. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
2. "Mercè Rodoreda | Autor | LibraryThing". LibraryThing.com (in Catalan). Retrieved 2024-02-19.
3. Real, Neus (2021). "Mercè Rodoreda, the most translated author in Catalan fiction". Catalan Historical Review (14): 89–103. ISSN 2013-4088.
4. Eaude, Michael (2013-04-01). "In Diamond Square". Barcelona Metropolitan. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
5. Hartas, Tina (2022-10-07). "Novel set in 1930s BARCELONA". TripFiction. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
6. Marti, Octavi (1982-10-19). "'La plaza del Diamante' ganó el primer premio de la Semana de Cine de Barcelona". El País (in Spanish). ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
7. 324cat (2004-08-09). "La novel·la de Rodoreda "La plaça del Diamant" en versió teatral arriba als escenaris". CCMA (in Catalan). Retrieved 2024-02-19.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
8. Taulé, Oriol Puig (2023-10-06). "'La plaça del Diamant': todas somos Colometa". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-02-19.
9. "'La plaça del Diamant', adaptada por Benet i Jornet, llega al TNC". La Vanguardia (in Spanish). 2007-11-07. Retrieved 2024-02-19.
10. Acn (2013-04-01). "45 lliures esterlines per la primera traducció a l'anglès de 'La plaça del Diamant'". Ara.cat (in Catalan). Retrieved 2024-02-19.
11. Ferrerós, Joan. "Rosenthal i la valquíria - 05 juliol 2022". El Punt Avui (in Catalan). Retrieved 2024-02-19.
12. "La plaça del Diamant (1962) - Works at lletrA - Catalan literature online". Universitat Oberta de Catalunya.

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