Domenec’s ghost and the lingering presence of the dead (including victims of the Spanish Civil War) show how memory is embedded in landscape.
Accept the ambiguity. You will not always know immediately who is speaking. That disorientation is intentional. It mimics the confusion of being alive in a vast, uncaring, beautiful world.
The novel is set in the rugged Pyrenees mountains, between Camprodon and Prats de Molló. The narrative begins with a moment of unexpected tragedy: Domènec, a mountain dweller, poet, and father, is struck and killed by a lightning bolt while reciting his verses. This event leaves behind his two young children, Mia and Hilari, and his widow, Sió.
Despite its experimental structure, the book grounds itself in profound human emotion. The enduring trauma of Domènec’s death, the subsequent isolation of his daughter Mia, and the complex relationships among the villagers provide a raw, emotional anchor. Solà illustrates that while human lives are fragile and brief, they are bound to the cyclical, resilient rhythms of nature. Life ends, but the mountain continues to dance. Solà’s Prose: Poetry in Prose Form irene sola canto yo y la montana baila
Beneath the ecological and mythical layers lurks a historical wound. The landslide that threatens the town, known as the "Glera," is a direct consequence of the massive storms of 1962. However, Solà subtly weaves in the memory of the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). The older characters remember the "traces of blood" in the snow and the men who fled into the woods. The mountain, in this sense, is a mass grave—not just of bodies, but of lost time.
The brutal persecution of alleged witches during the Inquisition.
┌──────────────────────────┐ │ The Pyrenean Landscape │ └────────────┬─────────────┘ │ ┌───────────────────────┼───────────────────────┐ ▼ ▼ ▼ Human Voices Natural Elements Animal Voices (Poets, Witches, Familes) (Clouds, Lightning) (Roebuck, Water Dogs) In this book, the narrative voice belongs to: Domenec’s ghost and the lingering presence of the
By weaving these disparate threads together, Solà suggests that a single human life cannot be understood in isolation. It must be viewed as part of a collective ecosystem of memory. Key Themes and Motifs 1. The Cyclical Nature of Life and Death
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The central event occurs early on: Sió, a young woman and a painter, dies after being struck by lightning while walking through the mountains. She leaves behind her husband, Domenec, and their two small children, Mia and Hilari. However, this is not a novel about widowhood. The lightning bolt that kills Sió sends a shockwave through the ecosystem. That disorientation is intentional
If no existing paper is found, consider structuring your own analysis around these themes:
The most striking feature of Solà’s novel is its sheer, unapologetic polyphony. Solà, an artist and poet as well as a novelist, rejects the idea that humans are the sole authors of history.
The defining structural feature of the novel is its shifting perspective. Each chapter is told from a completely different point of view, breaking down the traditional hierarchy that places humans at the center of the world. Some of the most memorable narrators in the book include:
Solà’s response to the climate crisis is not an overt political lecture. Instead, it is a quiet invitation to practice empathy across species lines. By forcing the reader to spend time inside the mind of a dying roe deer or a patch of fungi, she fosters a deep sense of interconnectedness.
Instead, she builds a 180-page prism where each chapter is handed to a different narrator: