Baroja, Pío
Baroja, Pío (1872–1956),contemporary Spanish novelist whose protagonists are usually rebellious men of action. Baroja's style has been praised for its spontaneity and vivacity, but it has also been characterized as cumbersome. Baroja preferred to write novels all his life, yet composed some short stories, a few of which could be considered novellas. Over time, Baroja's tales became more realistic, but in an early collection of short stories, Vidas sombrías (Sombre Lives, 1900), he included a few fantastic tales: ‘Médium’ (‘Medium’, 1900), ‘El trasgo’ (‘The Goblin’, 1900), and ‘El reloj’ (‘The Clock’, 1900). Among his short novels, it is worth noting ‘La dama de Urtubi’ (‘The Lady of Urtubi’, 1916), a story about witchcraft in the Basque country, Baroja's birthplace, and ‘La casa del crimen’ (‘The House of Crime’, 1920). In the latter, ghosts of dead men appear, a man is buried alive,...
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