Benito Pérez Galdós is often called the Spanish Dickens, and after reading El Doctor Centeno, I totally get it. He has that same gift for painting a whole society through the eyes of one ordinary person, with plenty of humor and heartache along the way.

The Story

The novel follows Felipe Centeno, a naive and impoverished boy from the Spanish countryside who arrives in Madrid with nothing. Desperate for work, he stumbles into the orbit of Alejandro Miquis, a charismatic but utterly chaotic medical student and self-styled philosopher. Felipe becomes Miquis's servant, or more accurately, his factotum—fetching meals, running errands, and getting swept up in his master's grandiose, half-baked projects. Miquis is a whirlwind of big ideas and empty pockets, living in a shabby room overflowing with books and strange specimens. The plot isn't driven by a single event, but by the daily struggle of their existence. We watch Felipe navigate this confusing new world, trying to understand the mercurial man he serves, while Miquis uses the boy as an audience for his theories and an accomplice in his constant scrambles to avoid creditors. It's a portrait of an unlikely and deeply unbalanced partnership.

Why You Should Read It

What hooked me was how real it all feels. Galdós doesn't give you heroes and villains. Felipe isn't purely noble; he's simple, sometimes slow to catch on, but fundamentally good. Miquis isn't a monster; he's fascinating, infuriating, and tragically flawed. Their relationship is the core of the book, and it's brilliantly complicated. Is it exploitation? A twisted form of mentorship? A weird friendship? Galdós lets you sit with that question. Plus, his Madrid is incredible. You can smell the street food, feel the grime, and hear the arguments through thin walls. He shows you the city's energy and its crushing poverty side-by-side.

Final Verdict

This book is perfect for readers who love classic literature but want something that feels immediate and human, not like a museum piece. If you enjoy stories about complex, flawed relationships and rich historical atmosphere, you'll fall into Galdós's world. It's also great for anyone interested in the roots of realist fiction. Fair warning: it's the first part of a series, so Felipe's journey is just beginning here. But this volume is a complete and utterly satisfying slice of life from another time that somehow doesn't feel distant at all.