Irene Solà’s Canto yo y la montaña baila (translated as When I Sing, Mountains Dance) is a polyphonic, lyrical novel that has been widely praised for its original narrative style and deep connection to the natural world. Set in the Catalan Pyrenees, it centers on the tragic death of a farmer named Domènec and the subsequent lives of his family. Core Narrative Style
The book’s most distinctive feature is its "army of narrators". Instead of a single protagonist, every chapter is told from a different perspective, many of which are non-human:
Elements & Nature: Narrative voices include lightning bolts, clouds, mountains, and rain.
Animals & Plants: Chapters are told by a roe deer, a dog, and even mushrooms (black chanterelles).
Myth & Folklore: Voices also include ghosts, "women of water," and witches executed in the 17th century. Major Themes
Canto Yo Y La Montaña Baila: Sola, Irene - Books - Amazon.ca
When I Sing, Mountains Dance (original Catalan title: Canto jo i la muntanya balla) is a multi-award-winning novel by Irene Solà that serves as a lyrical, polyphonic tribute to the Catalan Pyrenees. Originally published in 2019, it gained international acclaim, winning the European Union Prize for Literature in 2020 for its innovative narrative structure and deep connection to folklore and nature. Narrative Structure and Style
The novel is celebrated for its unique non-anthropocentric perspective, where the story is told through a "chorus" of voices:
Polyphonic Voices: Each chapter features a different narrator, including humans (farmers, children, widows), animals (roe deer, dogs), elements of nature (lightning bolts, clouds, mushrooms), and mythical figures (witches, water women).
Non-Linear Plot: Rather than a standard chronological plot, the book is fragmentary and atmospheric. It follows several generations of a family, starting with the tragic death of Domènec, a farmer-poet struck by lightning, and continuing through the lives of his widow Sió and their children.
Lyrical Prose: Solà, who is also a poet and artist, uses sensory and tactile language to evoke the sounds, smells, and textures of the landscape. Major Themes irene sola canto yo y la montana baila
Nature and Interconnectedness: The landscape is not just a setting but the main protagonist, embodying the cycle of life, death, and survival.
Folklore and Memory: The novel weaves together ancient legends, myths of water women, and historical trauma, such as the lingering ghosts of the Spanish Civil War.
Human vs. Natural World: It explores the tension between the permanence of the mountains and the fleeting, often violent nature of human history. Irene Solà. EU Prize Literature for Spain 2020.
In her novel Canto yo y la montaña baila When I Sing, Mountains Dance
), Irene Solà crafts a polyphonic narrative that dismantles the traditional human-centered perspective. Set in the Catalan Pyrenees, the story is told through an extraordinary range of voices—not just humans, but clouds, roe deer, mushrooms, ghosts, and water witches The Web of Perspectives The core of the novel lies in its radical empathy
. Solà gives equal weight to a woman mourning her husband and a storm cloud deciding where to drop its lightning. This shifts the focus from a linear plot to an atmospheric exploration of interconnectivity
. By granting agency to the non-human world, Solà suggests that the mountains are not a backdrop for human drama, but active participants in it. Violence and Vitality The landscape is steeped in history and trauma, from the Spanish Civil War
to ancient witch trials. Solà does not shy away from the brutality of nature or man; deaths occur suddenly and without fanfare. However, this violence is balanced by a profound
. The cycle of life—decay feeding growth—is mirrored in the prose, which is rhythmic, sensory, and deeply rooted in the soil. Language as Magic The title itself reflects the power of expression
. For Solà, "singing" is an act of reclamation. Whether it is a poet trying to capture the light or a dog observing its master, every voice contributes to a collective "song" that defines the territory. The novel suggests that while human life is fleeting, the Irene Solà’s Canto yo y la montaña baila
we leave behind merge with the earth, becoming part of the mountain's eternal dance. In short, Solà’s work is a celebration of existence in all its forms
, urging readers to look past their own reflection and listen to the vibrant, often silent, world around them. Should we focus more on the historical folklore elements or the specific symbolism of the animals in the book?
A paper on Irene Solà’s novel Canto jo i la muntanya balla (When I Sing, Mountains Dance) typically focuses on its posthumanist polyphony and its unique blend of Catalan folklore and landscape agency.
Potential Paper Title: "Voices of the Pyrenees: Decentralizing the Human in Irene Solà’s Polyphonic Narrative" Thesis Statement
The novel challenges the traditional anthropocentric narrative by granting equal agency to human and non-human entities—including animals, fungi, and natural phenomena—ultimately suggesting that individual human grief is merely one layer in the vast, interconnected history of the Pyrenean landscape. Core Themes to Explore
When I Sing, Mountains Dance by Irene Solà book review | The TLS
The Symphony of the Pyrenees: A Deep Dive into Irene Solà's "Canto yo y la montaña baila"
If a mountain could speak, what would it say? If the clouds over the Pyrenees had a memory, what tragedies would they recount? Irene Solà’s extraordinary novel, Canto yo y la montaña baila (English title: When I Sing, Mountains Dance
), doesn't just ask these questions—it lets the landscape answer for itself.
First published in Catalan in 2019, this book has become a literary phenomenon, winning the European Union Prize for Literature and captivating readers with its "polyphonic" narrative. Here is everything you need to know about this modern classic. 1. A World Where Everything has a Voice it has mycelial feelings—connectivity
The most striking feature of the novel is its narrative structure. It is not told by a single protagonist but by a chorus of voices, both animate and inanimate.
The Cast: You will hear from storm clouds, mushrooms, a roe deer, a dog, and even the ghosts of 17th-century witches.
The Humans: At the heart of the human story is the family of Domènec, a farmer and poet whose life is cut short by a bolt of lightning early in the book. We follow his wife Sió, and their children, Hilari and Mia, as they navigate grief and survival in the high mountains. 2. Setting: The Wild Heart of Catalonia
The story is deeply rooted in the Pyrenees, specifically between the villages of Camprodon and Prats de Molló. This isn't just a backdrop; it is a character in its own right. The landscape is a "fertile terrain" that preserves the memory of centuries of survival, civil wars, and folkloric legends. READING CLUB. CANTO YO Y LA MONTAÑA BAILA. - Naguisa
Published in 2019, Canto yo y la montaña baila is Irene Solà’s second novel. It was a critical and commercial sensation, winning the prestigious Premi Llibres Anagrama de Novel·la and the Premi de la Crítica de narrativa catalana.
While rooted in the Catalan literary tradition, the book has been widely translated (including an English translation by Mara Faye Lethem titled When I Sing, Mountains Dance), bringing Solà’s unique voice to an international audience.
The most revolutionary aspect of Solà’s prose is her use of narrative voice. She abandons the omniscient narrator for a polyphonic structure. The "I" (Yo) changes every few pages.
Solà performs a literary miracle here: she makes the non-human not just anthropomorphic but sentient in a non-human way. The mushroom does not have human feelings; it has mycelial feelings—connectivity, decay, rebirth. The mountain does not "think" like a brain; it dances like a body.
The novel rejects linear storytelling. Instead, it mimics the cycles of nature. Just as mushrooms sprout, die, and sprout again, the stories of the characters loop and intertwine. It explores how nature is both beautiful and indifferent—a lightning bolt is not "evil" for killing a man; it is simply a natural phenomenon.