Agneta Pleyel is a well-known figure in the cultural life of Scandinavia: author of plays and novels, poet, laureate of literary awards, professor of drama, literary critic, journalist. Her books have been translated into 20 languages. One of Pleyel’s plays, “By the River,” was staged at the Moscow Praktika Theater - the play was called “Niagara.” “The Watching Wind, or the Life of the Artist Abel” is Agnetha Pleyel’s debut novel. “He who watches the wind must not sow; and whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.” These words from the Old Testament are the key to understanding this amazing book, full of subtle metaphors and allusions. The artist Abel, like any creator, tries to stop time, to capture the moment when an idea is born, when silence is filled with sound, and an image appears on an empty canvas. And, like any creator, he searches for love all his life, because it is the main mystery of life.