The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon is the essential Barcelona novel. Set in the years after the Spanish Civil War, it follows a young boy who discovers a mysterious book in the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a secret library hidden in the heart of the old city. The Gothic Quarter comes alive in these pages, with its winding streets, hidden courtyards and layers of history. If you read one book before visiting Barcelona, make it this one.
Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell recounts his experience fighting in the Spanish Civil War and the political turmoil of 1930s Barcelona. It is both a war memoir and a love letter to the city and its fiercely independent people.
The Cathedral of the Sea by Ildefonso Falcones is a sweeping historical novel set in 14th-century Barcelona, centred on the building of the Santa Maria del Mar church. It paints a vivid picture of medieval life in the city's Ribera district.