“‘According to tradition, the first time someone visits this place, he must choose a book, whichever he wants, and adopt it, making sure that it will never disappear, that it will always stay alive. It’s a very important promise. For life,’ explained my father. ‘Today it’s your turn.’” 

Daniel’s father initiates him into the secret of the Cemetery of Lost Books. On this fateful day, Daniel chooses the book that changes his life: The Shadow of the Wind by Julián Carax.

“Once, in my father's bookshop, I heard a regular customer say that few things leave a deeper mark on a reader than the first book that finds its way into his heart. Those first images, the echo of words we think we have left behind, accompany us throughout our lives and sculpt a palace in our memory to which, sooner or later—no matter how many books we read, how many worlds we discover, or how much we learn or forget—we will return.” 

One of the most consistent themes throughout the novel is Zafón’s use of books as tools for understanding the world and the people in it. Though Julián’s work contains dark and even evil characters, such as the devil, Laín Coubert, they play an important role in creating the mystical and symbolically real atmosphere of both The Shadow of the Wind by Carax, which the reader only hears about, and The Shadow of the Wind by Zafón, which the reader is currently reading. This doubling effect of realities adds specifically to the elements of magical realism and atmosphere of otherworldliness throughout the novel.

“‘What killed him was loyalty to people who, when their time came, betrayed him. Never trust anyone, Daniel, especially the people you admire. Those are the ones who will make you suffer the worst blows.’"

Clara Barceló gives 10-year-old Daniel advice, telling him about what caused her father’s death during the Civil War. In their relationship, she treats him as an equal, despite their age difference. Clara is about ten years older than Daniel. She knows that Daniel admires and cares for her, and she uses his feelings to manipulate him as he gets older.