Carpenter's Pencil

by Manuel Rivas (Author), Manuel Rivas (Author)

• Used

  Paperback
  2001

  $4.20

  In a prison in the city of Santiago de Compostela, during the early months of 1936, an artist sketches the famous porch of the cathedral that is known as the P rtico da Gloria. He uses a carpenter s pencil. Instead of reproducing the faces of the prophets and elders on the sculptured portal, he replaces them with those of his Republican prison inmates. A prison warder, who is to be the sketcher s murderer, watches in fascination. Years later the warder recounts his memories of that time to a young prostitute and tells of how the artist and his carpenter s pencil continued to influence him. This deeply poetic and moving novel explores the tragedy of the civil war that engulfed Spain and so shook the rest of the world, as well as the memories of the men and women who survived. In the process it also tells an unforgettable love story.

• Used

  Paperback
  2001

  $4.25

  A timeless love story that grew out of the horrors of the Spanish Civil War. It is the summer of 1936, the early months of the agonising civil war that engulfs Spain. In a prison in the pilgrim city of Santiago de Compostela, an artist sketches the famous porch of the cathedral, the Portico de Gloria. He uses a carpenter's pencil. But instead of reproducing the sculptured faces of the prophets and elders, he draws the faces of his fellow Republican prisoners. Years later in post-Franco Spain, a survivor of that period, Doctor Daniel da Barca, returns from exile to his native Galicia, and the threads of past memories begin to be woven together.

• New

  Paperback
  2003

  $11.61

  It is the summer of 1936, the early months of the agonising civil war that engulfs Spain and shakes the rest of the world. In a prison in the pilgrim city of Santiago de Compostela, an artist sketches the famous porch of the cathedral, the Portico da Gloria. He uses a carpenter's pencil. But instead of reproducing the sculptured faces of the prophets and elders, he draws the faces of his fellow Republican prisoners. Many years later in post-Franco Spain, a survivor of that period, Doctor Daniel da Barca, returns from exile to his native Galicia, and the threads of past memories begin to be woven together. This poetic and moving novel conveys the horror and savagery of the tragedy that divided Spain, and the experiences of the men and women who lived through it. Yet in the process, it also relates one of the most beautiful love stories imaginable.