Forgotten Books: The Drop of Blood (Original title: La gota de sangre) by Emilia Pardo Bazán

Some scholars have noted that Alarcon’s novel, The Nail, does not have the characteristics of a classic detective story. The solution in The Nail is found by chance, fate or providence, not deductive analysis. Despite some elements of intrigue and mystery The Nail is, after all, a romantic book. See my previous post HERE. For this reason, The Drop of Blood (La gota de sangre, 1911) is widely considered the first Spanish detective novel.     

Emilia Pardo Bazán (1852 – 1921)…. wrote several stories and short novels in the detective fiction mode, particularly La cana (1911; The White Hair), La gota de sangre (1911; The Drop of Blood) and its still unpublished continuation Selva (c. 1914)….. Although the investigators are invariably male and amateurs, Pardo Bazán’s innovation in the genre include a central preoccupation with the subordinate situation of women, reflecting the author’s reformist intention and her nonconforming views of the official moral and social rules. (Taken from: The Feminist Encyclopedia of Spanish Literature: A-M, edited by Janet Perez and Maureen Ihrie, Greenwood Press, 2002). 

In The Drop of Blood, Ignacio Selva, to prove his innocence, becomes an amateur sleuth to solve the murder of a businessman named Francisco Grijalva.

Emilia Pardo Bazán y el relato policial por Concepción Bados Ciria (in Spanish).

23 April World Book and Copyright Day

By celebrating this Day throughout the world, UNESCO seeks to promote reading, publishing and the protection of intellectual property through copyright.

23 April is a symbolic date for world literature, since 23 April 1616 was the date of death of Cervantes, Shakespeare and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega. 23 April is also the date of birth or death of other prominent authors such as Maurice Druon, K.Laxness, Vladimir Nabokov, Josep Pla and Manuel Mejía Vallejo.

The idea for this celebration originated in Catalonia (Spain) where it has become a tradition to give a rose as a gift for each book purchased.

The year 2012 also marks the 80th anniversary of the Index Translationum. This international bibliography of translation provides a unique tool for the monitoring of translation flows in the world. UNESCO will celebrate this anniversary by organizing a debate on this instrument. 

Consequently, UNESCO suggests that the activities organized in conjunction with this year’s World Book and Copyright Day focus on the themes of books and translation.

Taken from UNESCO.Org