Si yo fuera rico! Novela original

A warm, tongue‑in‑cheek portrait opens with a heartfelt letter to a rising young lawyer, framing the novel’s playful mix of politics, ambition and everyday life in late‑Victorian Spain. The narrator’s affection for his friend sets a tone of gentle satire, hinting at the bustling liberal circles that will brush against the story’s quieter corners.

The first chapter drops us into the cramped world of Doña Bernarda Bonet, a fifty‑year‑old woman whose stern demeanor and perpetual black merino dress have become her trademark. Despite her harsh outwardness, Bernarda lives with her beloved brother Benito, and her inner life—filled with secret hopes, quiet dramas, and a fierce sense of dignity—begins to surface amid the hum of a modest factory. As she navigates the banal and the mysterious, the novel invites listeners to watch a seemingly ordinary heroine reveal the hidden depths of ordinary people, all while the author sprinkles sharp wit and keen social observation throughout.