BOOK DESCRIPTION
Having left behind his childhood town full of dead-end jobs and bleak prospects for a future, Rudy, a nineteen-year old runaway, arrives in Barcelona.
Two days later, he finds himself outside a subway station half-naked and robbed of all his possessions.
Trapped in a city whose language he doesn’t speak, without a passport or anyone to turn to, Rudy is plunged into a world of hunger and homelessness. Yet, fighting off the ravages of slow starvation proves far easier than the struggle to maintain his own decency and humanity when he is forced to befriend a hostile thug who holds the only key to Rudy’s escape.
Unconditionally realistic, Mad Days of Me: Escaping Barcelona explores the conflicted ideology of youth and society’s indifference to suffering in a harrowing tale of survival. This is a Story of perseverance. A story of anguish, dignity, madness, and redemption.
REVIEW
An Insightful and Powerful Read, By Piaras 23 Mar. 2017
Whatever flaws we might identify or frustrations we might feel are trivial in comparison to a reader’s pure joy in losing himself/herself in a narrative. When all the elements come together: an intriguing plot, thoughtful, profound themes, complex, troubling, characters, and language that make us shudder for its honesty, clarity, and confidence; we gratefully set all analysis aside and give ourselves up to the sheer magic of a great book. And for me, Mad Days of Me: Escaping Barcelona is such a book. It’s a well crafted story that will draw you in from the opening page.
However, this somewhat dark tale is not for the faint hearted. It’s a story about a nineteen year old boy, Rudy, who finds himself stranded in Barcelona with no money or passport. He can’t speak the language and has no way to leave. It’s a story that will take you on a shocking and emotional journey. Readers should be forewarned that the main character is raped by another man. In addition to the appalling starvation, and the other events he continues to go through while endeavoring to stay alive, he in contrast reflects on the social conditions and connections, but with an underlying hopefulness.
This is my first time reading this author and I must say I was very impressed. This story had every element a good story should have. An exciting plot, attention to detail, but best of all fleshed out, well-written and well-rounded character development. There’s an abundance of well illustrated scenes that really make you feel like you are right there in the story, and that’s something I really look for in a good book.
This captivating and commendable work had me immersed from the beginning. The story flows from scene to scene with ease, and the author shows exceptional skill when it comes to storytelling. There are twists and turns in this page turner that will take the reader on a mesmerizing and alluring journey!
It’s one of those stories that come along once in awhile that makes you want to read it non-stop until you get to the end. I’m giving nothing further away here. And this, I hope, will only add to the mystery and enjoyment for the reader!
I’ll certainly be looking forward to reading more from Henry Martin in the future. This story has all the hallmarks of making a great series. I would definitely recommend this book. Five stars from me.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
When he’s not buried elbow-deep in some greasy motorcycle project, Henry Martin enjoys reading quality literature and writing prose and poetry of varying coherency. He finds inspiration in conquering the open road while trying to outrun some of the characters he created in the past. He lives with his family in the Northeast (United States), surrounded by coyotes, foxes, and bears.
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