Spain Books

For my recent compilation of pilgrimage quotations ("Ultreia! Onward! Progress of the Pilgrim") I read all 40 or so contemporary English journal accounts available about the various routes. Egan's is clearly within the first grouping of 8 or so best such books (i.e. largely those written by established authors and/or academics). Coming from Harvard's Div School just a few hundred meters from where I work, Egan's book is really one of the handful of best ones that attempts to break free (somewhat successfully here) of the linear (and often dead boring) narratives that characterize many such pilgrimage accounts, as she engages in the sort of inner pilgrimage that makes such journeys worthwhile. And she can certainly pen prose; i.e. I used 11 very nice quotations of hers in the review volume Ultreia! Onward!.

Rebeccasreads highly recommends FUMBLING as an outstanding account of the pilgrimage of a 25 year old divinity student carrying a heavy load of guilt, grief & self-loathing.

Salted in the stories of her trials on the trail, Kerry Egan offers the history of the pilgrimage from the French Pyrenees to Santiago de Compostela in Spain, giving us visions of a fable land, as well as how the journey cracked her open so that she could heal from her raw & unrecognized emotions.

Kerry Egan, back in 1999, was one angry woman. How Alex, her boyfriend, stays with her, is her compass when she's lost, bearing the brunt of her impressive rage & hopeless longing, is just as exciting as how she stumbles across the land upon which others have trod for thousands of years.

If pilgrimages fascinate you, then FUMBLING offers both the reason & the value of taking that first step on the journey to healing.

Fumbling is the best book I have read this year. It provides a personal perspective into Ms. Egan's pilgrimage while offering insight into the history and psychology of engaging on a pilgrimage.

The book is written is short chapters that make it easy to read in moments stolen from a hectic schedule. There were times when my eyes filled with tears and others when I laughed out loud while reading this book.

I think I'll read it again.

No table of contents, no index, I just had to dive in, but by the end of the first page the imagery of the words had captured me. An excerpt from the second paragraph:

"I knelt in the back of the church, my forehead on the top lip of the smooth, varnished pew in front of me. The wood was hard against my forehead, . . . .I'd been crying for a long time . . . ."

This is a story of pilgrimage, grieving and transformation, but not a daily journal. There are thirty one numbered episodes, sometimes causing a page break, sometimes just a break in the middle of the page. At a higher level the book is organized into parts, starting with Part 1 Fumbling, Part 2 Walking . . . and so on.

The episodes are a series of vignettes of the Camino experience. They are roughly sequential, but any one of them could stand alone as an essay, for example in a newspaper column. They all will bring back memories and tug the heart of anyone who has walked the Camino de Santiago.

This is a book you can read for pleasure, but certainly one you will want to read after making the journey.

Whether you're reading this on a train or on your back porch during a snow storm, be prepared for an extraodinary journey through northern Spain in the summer. For those of you planning to travel the Camino, Egan describes with vivid detail the scenary(especially the wheat), the people, and everything you'd want to know that they don't tell you in a guide book. It is of course much more than a physical journey, and as you travel with Egan it is as though you are taking a trip through yourself, only this time with a witty, insightful, and adventurous tour guide who doesn't stick to the path.

I love the writing in this series, it's such a pleasure to read, I wonder why are so many other textbooks so boring?

I'd love to give it five stars, except that there are recurring themes I find grating - some of her "fan club for the US government" stuff is just in totally inappropriate places. For instance, "American slavery was a horror. We should never pretend it was anything else. But the American system of government lets us correct mistakes. When you study history you see we usually do. Of that we can be proud." Gag me with a spoon, slavery was not abolished until more than 240 years after the first slave was delivered in 1619! Hakim does such a great job of fairly telling the story, why ruin it?

Another place I found disappointing was the perpetuation of the myth that the first settlers at Plymouth were called "Pilgrims" and that the Europeans started Thanksgiving. She has a box on Thanksgiving saying the story of the first Thanksgiving is a "real turkey", lists some other European Thanksgiving celebrations, and then neglects to mention that the Indians had been conducting Thanksgiving celebrations at harvest time for generations. I'd love to see someone do such a great job TELLING the story, who could also not perpetuate those irritating little false stories that schoolchildren are always taught.

Gosh, this doesn't sound like the positive review I inteded, but I see others have already told the good stuff. It's wonderfully well written!

This book is very fun and imformative. It gives us information, but in a fun way...I recomend this book to anyone under the age of 13, and who enjoys history...if you get this book in school, dont be scared it is fun!

I just borrowed this book from the library and now plan to buy the whole set. As a home schooling parent, I am always struggling to find quality materials and this series is just that. Hakim's books are easy to read and comprehend. Most importantly, they give a realistic view of history, not the politically correct one so often taught.

As I teach my children U.S. history, I want them to know that, yes, the white people were sometimes violent and unfair to the Native Americans, but some Native Americans were that way too. Before the Europeans came, they kidnapped and killed each other. I want my kids to know the whole truth and these books are very fair. No matter what the race, some people are good and some are not.

I highly recommend these books for teaching history to children and even adults.

"Making Thirteen Colonies: 1600-1740" is the second volume in Joy Hakim's "A History of US." The first volume covered how the first Americans crossed over from Asia to become Indians and the first Europeans, mainly the Spanish but also the French and English, began settling the New World. This volume focuses on the narrow string of settlements established by the English that became the thirteen colonies whose people began moving westward and who also started to question the relationship they had with England (there is a small amount of overlap between this and the next volume, which covers period of American history from 1735-1791).

Hakim begins with a preface that looks at the vast mixture of ideas that were brought over from the Mediterranean world and took root in the Americas. Along with the first chapter, which talks about the comet that appeared in 1607 as a portent of great changes for the world, this preface sets up several key themes that will be revisited throughout this and future volumes. "Making Thirteen Colonies" has 42 chapters and it the book is divided into five main sections. The first (chapters 2-12) tells how English settlers came to stay by establishing the first permanent colony in Jamestown, Virginia. The second (chapters 13-23) looks primarily at the Puritans arriving in New England, although Hakim also touches on what was happening between the Indians and the Spanish in the southwest. The third section (chapters 24-30) tells about the mid-Atlantic colonies, most notably New Amsterdam/York and Pennsylvania. The fourth section (chapter 31-39) returns to the South, looking at not only Ole Virginny but also the two Carolinas and Georgia. This unit also looks at the Triangle Trade and other considerations that united the four southern and nine northern colonies. The final section (chapters 40-42) is a transitional unit, that looks at how the colonists began to move westward and the stage was set for the period of history that would make those thirteen colonies into a new nation.

One of the great advantages to writing a ten-volume history of the United States is that unlike most standard American history textbooks "A History of US" is able to clearly establish the unique identities of each of those original thirteen colonies. I recently finished reading an excellent series of books, each of which was devoted to an individual colony, and Hakim ends up being closer to those volumes than she does the standard textbook. Consequently, in addition to the traditional stories about Pocahontas and John Smith in Jamestown, William Penn and the Quakers of Pennsylvania, the Salem witch trials, Ben Franklin as the quintessential American, and Daniel Boone finding routes through the mountains, Hakim establishes an individual identity for each colony.

However, the main strength of this series is how Hakim engages young readers, the same way you would expect a "real" teacher to do in a "real" classroom. This shows up primarily in her ability to anticipate and answer questions that students might have (e.g., why the Indians were not enslaved). I can easily see why this series is popular with parents who are home schooling their children. The book is richly illustrated with dozens and dozens of historic paintings, etchings, drawings, maps, engravings, and assorted reproductions. The margins are crammed with interesting facts, definitions, and quotations, and features on topics such as Land Green and Africa: The Unknown Continent are sprinkled throughout the book. The After Words this time around are devoted to cartography and has some superb examples of 16h- and 17th-century maps. It is easily to see why this series has impressed so many people and why Hakim is able to get such good responses from young students who are used to getting their information from computers and the Internet.

"Making Thirteen Colonies: 1600-1740" is the second volume in Joy Hakim's "A History of US." The first volume covered how the first Americans crossed over from Asia to become Indians and the first Europeans, mainly the Spanish but also the French and English, began settling the New World. This volume focuses on the narrow string of settlements established by the English that became the thirteen colonies whose people began moving westward and who also started to question the relationship they had with England (there is a small amount of overlap between this and the next volume, which covers period of American history from 1735-1791).

Hakim begins with a preface that looks at the vast mixture of ideas that were brought over from the Mediterranean world and took root in the Americas. Along with the first chapter, which talks about the comet that appeared in 1607 as a portent of great changes for the world, this preface sets up several key themes that will be revisited throughout this and future volumes. "Making Thirteen Colonies" has 42 chapters and it the book is divided into five main sections. The first (chapters 2-12) tells how English settlers came to stay by establishing the first permanent colony in Jamestown, Virginia. The second (chapters 13-23) looks primarily at the Puritans arriving in New England, although Hakim also touches on what was happening between the Indians and the Spanish in the southwest. The third section (chapters 24-30) tells about the mid-Atlantic colonies, most notably New Amsterdam/York and Pennsylvania. The fourth section (chapter 31-39) returns to the South, looking at not only Ole Virginny but also the two Carolinas and Georgia. This unit also looks at the Triangle Trade and other considerations that united the four southern and nine northern colonies. The final section (chapters 40-42) is a transitional unit, that looks at how the colonists began to move westward and the stage was set for the period of history that would make those thirteen colonies into a new nation.

One of the great advantages to writing a ten-volume history of the United States is that unlike most standard American history textbooks "A History of US" is able to clearly establish the unique identities of each of those original thirteen colonies. I recently finished reading an excellent series of books, each of which was devoted to an individual colony, and Hakim ends up being closer to those volumes than she does the standard textbook. Consequently, in addition to the traditional stories about Pocahontas and John Smith in Jamestown, William Penn and the Quakers of Pennsylvania, the Salem witch trials, Ben Franklin as the quintessential American, and Daniel Boone finding routes through the mountains, Hakim establishes an individual identity for each colony.

However, the main strength of this series is how Hakim engages young readers, the same way you would expect a "real" teacher to do in a "real" classroom. This shows up primarily in her ability to anticipate and answer questions that students might have (e.g., why the Indians were not enslaved). I can easily see why this series is popular with parents who are home schooling their children. The book is richly illustrated with dozens and dozens of historic paintings, etchings, drawings, maps, engravings, and assorted reproductions. The margins are crammed with interesting facts, definitions, and quotations, and features on topics such as Land Green and Africa: The Unknown Continent are sprinkled throughout the book. The After Words this time around are devoted to cartography and has some superb examples of 16th- and 17th-century maps. It is easily to see why this series has impressed so many people and why Hakim is able to get such good responses from young students who are used to getting their information from computers and the Internet.

James Halon will tickle your adventure-bone with this novel! His characters have an incredible depth to them, and the premise of his story is unique and fast-paced. Halon's main character Jim Morgan has wit, intrigue and sex-appeal. Morgan is today's James Bond without all the gadgets and far-fetched scenarios. See what happens when a Field Engineer is thrown into a life of spys, danger, and romance! Even Halon's 'bad guy' has been done originally and is a refreshing departure from the norm. I recommend this book to anyone who loves adventure with a twist of romance!! For Halon fans, be sure to check out his collection of poetry entitled "Poetry" by James Halon, too! You will glad that you did! This author is extremely versatile and has a firm grip on how to entertain a reader!

James Halon takes the spy thriller to a whole new level with his novel The Malagasy Tortoise. Engineer Jim Morgan has a knack for being in the wrong place at the wrong time and making the most of it. Fancy clothes, secret weapons, Bond girls, Morgan doesn't need them (well almost!)as he battles the forces of evil. Humor, witty dialogue, brilliant description, and imaginative situations keep this fast paced book clicking along.

James Halon has done an excellent job of mixing elements of intrigue, action packed adventure, and infatuation.Jim Morgan, like so many men, is carnially motivated by love - or lust (I'm not sure he knows the difference). His motto seems to be love the one your with. His overactive libido leads him into one disastrous scenario after another.
On his quest to find the rare Malagasy Tortoise in Madagascar, he finds himself torn between his recently reunited love, Eunice and the young, sultry, CIA agent, Sophie. Perhaps, the mysterious Tina Johnson would be a good distraction from this dilemma. What is a man capable accomplishing in the name of love? Jim Morgan, an engineer by trade, finds himself smack in the middle of a CIA covert operation. Car crashes, burning buildings, Russian prisons, is any woman worth the tortures he finds himself enduring?
This book is a great read for any audience. It's difficult to find characters portrayed so honestly. James Bond, he's not. Jim Morgan tries to be just as suave and sophisticated with the ladies. Instead, his charismatic wit and humor seem to be his strong point. In the end, like Bond, Morgan finds his share of love / lust.
This reader can't wait for the next, Jim Morgan Adventure!

If James Bond was an Engineer and wore sweatshirts instead of tuxedos his name would be Jim Morgan... Well, maybe not. Morgan is a refreshingly unique character unlike the typical male protagonist. James Halon has conjured many wonderful characters in this book that take the reader on a bizarre quest for a rare tortoise. A quest that reveals multiple lovers, deadly spies and plenty to laugh at along the way. I look forward to Jim's next adventure and future dreams.

Author Jim Halon has managed to create characters that enabled this reader to feel she knows them personally. A very well crafted story with laugh out loud writing. The humor the author displays throughout is refreshing and uplifting.

Halon has a wonderful ability to place the reader "there"...with exceptional description, one feels like they're partaking of the adventure right along with Morgan. The fresh prose delights throughout the story. "My steak disappeared so fast that David Copperfield, the infamous illusionist, would have been awestruck, and demanding that I eat another so he could pick up on my trick."

I was gravely mistaken when I initally thought this was a "man's" adventure story. Halon has combined adventure with a hefty amount of humor and romance. This reader was quite impressed with his choice of female characters...strong-willed, intelligent, competent, attractive and independent. Don't expect a damsel in distress in this novel. Halon's female characters makes this particular female reader exceptionally impressed with what he created. All of them, including Morgan himself, are realistic and believable. I sincerely give this novel a five star rating, only because six wasn't available. Order a copy, curl up in a comfortable spot and prepare to be highly entertained! This author has great promise and I look forward to the sequel.

UN GRAN LIBRO, ESCRITO HACE BASTANTE TIEMPO, MUCHO MEJOR EXPLICADO Q EL :SECRETO" QUIERES CONOCER LA VERDADERA LEY DE LA ATRACCION ? LEE ESTE LIBRO

So much information and so much to learn from such a little book. This book is a guide for living and bettering your life and the world.

Well this book is probably the best book, I have ever read in my life. Because it helped me change the way, I see life and it is very important; what the message in the book, it is also important to practice, the exercises that are in the book. I do not mean "exercise" to go to the gym, but exercises to help you control your mind and body. I love this book it changed my life and I have giving this book as a gift to many of my friends and close family and it has change the way they see life. So read it and try what it says, on the book and you will see!!!

Recientemente compre este libro, y confieso que me dio un poco de miedo cuando estaba en plena desicion de comprarlo, pero, NO ME ARREPIENTO, excelente en todos los sentidos.
Lo he leido aprox. 8 veces.

I recently bought this book, i readed aprox. 8 times, EXCELLENT!

MIAMI FL.

this book helped me a lot with my life and understanding the power of love, you will keep it just close to you to give you guidance and wisdom.

This is a delightful gem which captures the spiritual inspiration of the pilgrimage both historically and in the modern context. It is a marvelous book for those who intend their journey to be more than just a long cultural hike.

For my recent comiplation of pilgrimage quotations ("Ultreia! Onward! Progress of the Pilgrim") I read all 40 or so contemporary English journal accounts available about the various routes. Rudolph's is clearly within the first grouping of 8 or so best such books (i.e. largely those written by established authors and/or academics). He is able to convey in a fraction of the pages of other volumes many interesting and important aspects of undertaking such a pilgrimage. Though not the most quotable of sources (i.e. 7 such extracted for the review volume Ultreia! Onward!) Rudopplh nevertheless is particularly good at writing about the process of pilgrimage.

The book reads as if you were sitting in an art history lecture -- the author writes using simple, direct, yet descriptive language. While the narrative is framed around the St James trail, it is really a book about inner transformation, not a description of the external world and the landmarks one sees during the pilgrimage. In all, the book has helped me prepare my frame of mind for the bike pilgrimage I am about to embark. The best part -- it's a short and quick read!

Conrad Rudolph, a professor of medieval art,has made the pilgrimage to Santiago de Campostela and knows enough about the history of the pilgrimage and the art and architecture to be seen along the way to write a book that tells not only how to prepare for the long hike and what to take but also what is to be seen and what it all means from a historical perspective.

As I write this review, I'm wearing the boots I plan to use on my own Camino pilgrimage next week. In addition to breaking them in, I've been preparing my body, mind, and heart for the long walk to Santiago. Reading "Pilgrimage to the End of the World" was an enjoyable and necessary part of that process.

Conrad Rudolph's book on the Camino de Santiago has four parts: 1) some historical background, 2) an account of his trek, 3) a series of black-and-white personal photographs with explanations that range from a paragraph to a page or so long, and 4) a practical guide (what to wear, how to pack, etc.). Despite its brevity (only 131 pages), Mr. Rudolph's memoir is packed with useful and interesting information. The surprising revelation that the author is a rationalist only serves to make his tale more compelling, especially considering the profound effect a pilgrimage usually done for spiritual reasons had upon him.

Indeed, the Camino began as an important medieval religious pilgrimage to Santiago, alleged burial place of St. James. But it has grown to accommodate folks on quests of many kinds. What's ironic about Mr. Rudolph's journey is that despite his rationalist mindset, he walked the farthest distance of any pilgrim, faith-based or otherwise, I've read about so far. He began in Le Puy, France, went through Santiago, and concluded in Finisterre - the "End of the World" on the Spanish west coast. That's about double the walking distance from the usual starting point of St. Jean Pied de Port, a French town on the Spanish border. And I thought we religious folk were supposed to be the crazy ones...

Despite his excellent account and helpful information, I part ways with the author in one key area: his firm recommendation of an external-frame pack. He's correct about the increased ventilation it offers, since the external frame holds the pack away from one's back. But according to another pilgrim's memoir, you'll sweat no matter what kind of pack you carry. Also, there are far more sizes and types of internal-frame packs to choose from. At REI I found only one model of external frame pack for sale among the plethora of internal packs - a forlorn Kelty similar to the one the author used. Bottom line, I'd say that an internal-frame pack is a better choice (I'm taking a 4,300 cubic-inch Gregory Baltoro).

At any rate, "Pilgrimage to the End of the World" is a must-read for anyone contemplating, or actually preparing for, the Camino pilgrimage. Other helpful and inspirational books I used to get ready include: "Buen Camino," by Jim & Eleanor Clem, "Camino Chronicle" by Susan Alcorn, and "Fumbling," by Kerry Egan (also, check the Confraternity of St. James' website for lots of good info and up-to-date Camino guidebooks). If you choose to go, let me be the first you wish you a Buen Camino!

UPDATE 9/7/07: On 7/14/07 I stepped off in St. Jean Pied-de-Port (France), and on 8/24/07 I walked into Santiago, Spain. Turned out that the boots I mentioned in the first paragraph were too heavy, so I bought a lighter Spanish pair in Logrono that served me well. My internal-frame pack was the Camino standard (although the model I had was too large and initially weighted down with unnecessary stuff) - out of the hundreds of pilgrims I saw, only a couple had external frame packs. At any rate, I recommend this book as necessary reading for anyone planning to walk the Way.

This book is a first rate historical work chronicling the most magnificent working class struggle in history. A time when anarchism meant something truly inspiring and when it still had substance.

The Spanish anarchists remind us of a time when large numbers of people vehemently opposed the status quo of Capitalism and the State and truly did what was necessary to organize a mass movement to radically change it. Bookchin writes with such a clear yet intelligent prose that virtually everything he writes is worth reading. This book is one of his best and along with his 4 volume (and unfortunately very expensive) book "The Third Revolution" it very much proves how strong a historian he really was during his lifetime.

While this book is both highly informative and exciting in its evocation of a remarkable period of history, I cannot also be saddened by the fact that Bookchin died last year in 2006 and that his fiery intellect is no longer with us. I am also saddened by this work in another way. While Bookchin brings to light a period of history that should never be forgotten or not learned from, looking at the modern anarchist "scene" I cannot help but feel that the glory days of classical anarchism are gone and that contemporary anarchism has completely degenerated into misanthropy, post-modernism, mysticism, nihilism, and an opposition to forming mass movements at all; in effect that today's anarchism has become completely coopted by modern bourgeois society and has been rendered completely inert by that mentality. Let us hope that is not the case, but if this is so then we, those of us who still insist that a genuine social revolution is desperately needed and also a mass movement organized from below to achieve it, must forge ahead and adopt a new term for our form of revolutionary libertarian socialism, something Bookchin tried to do in the last years of his life and from which we can learn a great deal.

Bookchin established himself among the foremost anarchist theorists of the late 20th century with his sparkling collection "Post-Scarcity Anarchism".

With "The Spanish Anarchists" he proves himself to be a historian of the first rank, drawing on primary sources, a wide array of secondary literature, and in-depth interviews with key members of the Spanish Anarchist movement to paint a vivid picture of half a century of organizing that led to the most powerful anarchist upsurge in world history (yet!).

Bookchin handles the history deftly, drawing out lessons for practice while always making clear the specificity of the historical moment. He pulls vivid quotes and his character sketches of key figures in the movement are masterful.

This is history for history buffs, though, and gets into considerable detail on several decades of struggle in several hundred pages. It may be boring for those who do not have a particular interest in the period.

Note well: the book does not discuss the Civil War and Revolution of 1936-1939-- for a detailed treatment of that struggle, Bookchin recommends Bolloten's massive "The Spanish Civil War" and for a shorter take, Broué and Temime's The Revolution and the Civil War in Spain". Orwell's classic "Homage to Catalonia" is also a brilliant read, albeit from a semi-Trotskyist point of view.

The other guy said it better than me, but Bookchin's book is one of the few that really get's down deep into the process by which anti-authoritarian ideas and movements get generated and how they achieve, or can achieve, social change. Wonderful both for theory and history.

The first point to mention: One's understanding of what happened in Spain is almost certainly indicated by the answer to one question. Was this the Spanish Civil War or the Spanish Revolution? The essence of Bookchin's book (and it is not original to him) is that there was a revolution within the Civil War. While there is considerable recognition of the Civil War, there is much less discussion and consideration of the revolution within that civil war.

One immediate problem in understanding the dynamics in Spain is the crazy quilt set of actors. Key groups run the gamut from Fascists (Francisco Franco as a leader) to monarchists to liberals/moderates to Marxists (Trotskyites, represented by the organization POUM, versus Stalinists, organized as the UGT [with members called Ugetistas]) and anarchists (syndicalists, members of the union CNT, whose members were called Cenetistas, and straight out anarchists, members in the organization FAI, with individual members referred to as Faistas). Yikes! One needs a scorecard to keep them straight!

This book does not focus on the Civil War and Revolution so much as on the background to those events. Bookchin goes back to the anarchist Mikhail Bakunin's influence on Spanish radicals. Much of this book is the run up to the Civil War and the revolution embedded within that Civil War--the Republic versus the Fascists represented the Civil War. The anarchists trying to implement libertarian societies was the revolution.

Topically, the book begins with the origins of the idea of anarchism in Spain. Bakunin was a critical figure here, a Russian aristocrat who, oddly enough, adopted the anarchist perspective. An emissary who did not speak Spanish brought Bakunin's ideas to Spain; given the linguistic obstacles, it is surprising indeed to see that he had an impact on the development of a Spanish anarchist movement.

The book then describes the development of that movement in Spain over the past quarter century of the 1800s and the early 1900s as well. In short, anarchism did develop something of a foothold in Spain. Unfortunately, some of the advocated if this view engaged in "propaganda of the deed," terrorism, to try to advance the cause. In the process, much damage was done to that very movement.

Bookchin then described the twin developments--support for anarcho-syndicalism (a perspective that argued that workers' organizations ought to structure the productive process and be the basis for organizing society) and the CNT (a union that supported syndicalism). The essence of the latter can be discerned by this quotation from Bookchin (page 162): "Obedience to the wishes of the membership was a cardinal rule. At the annual congresses, for example, many delegations arrived with mandatory instructions on how to vote on each major issue to be considered. If an action was decided upon, none of the delegations which disagreed with it or felt it was beyond the capacity of its membership was obliged to abide by the decision."

The instability of government in the 1920s and 1930s is then discussed, as a lead up to the outbreak of the Civil War/Revolution. Bookchin concludes by observing that (page 302): "We must leave the details of that revolution--its astonishing achievements and its tragic subversion--to another volume."
Obviously, Bookchin has an ideological perspective on the events in Spain over the period of time that his book covers. And that must be taken into account when reading this work. Nonetheless, overall, his scholarship is solid, and much of what he contends is found in other volumes as well (hence, triangulation occurs to some extent). For those wanting to understand the Spanish Civil War from a perspective not normally presented, this book makes a solid contribution.

"Can anarchy work" or "Is anarchy a mere utopia" are questions asked frequently by people who are not informed about the ideology and philosophy of anarchy but, most importantly, the history of anarchy.
Since you arent going to be taught any of all this in school the burden falls on your shoulders to discover it (amongst most other meaningful things that you will not be told about).
Murray Bookchin, is a great historian, and does an awesome job of documenting the most recent and most convincing attempt at anarchy in pre-war Spain.
Bookchin descibes a movement that found roots in the "lumpen proletariat", that part of the working class with almost zero education that marxists looked upon with contempt considering them incapable of ever starting a revolution.
Yet, exactly that part of the working class was the one that through appaling living and social conditions embraced the concept of anarchy, namely, no masters, equality, work as creation and not braindead toil, education that promotes free thinking and not unquestioned swallowing of dogma and above all liberty.
This is a fascinating story, perhaps overly fascinating compared with modern times where most the people take social conditions as self-understood. A movement, that, through a massive network of action that ranged from strikes against brutally oppressing regimes that inevitably and repeatedly resulted in massive bloodbaths, direct action, informing people about their present future and past while actually opening up to them a whole new world of possibilities that would drive them out of their every day misery and into a new situation where through thriving freedom the society would transform.
Bookchin introduces the readers (as he had to) to some of anarchy leading theoriticians (and practicians) such as Bakoonin and their influence on the Spanish anarchists while he goes into exhaustive detail highlighting internal conflicts concerning differing anarchistic tendencies as well as the ones against socialists (who more than often proved to be disguised conservatives) and of course against the establishment itself and its organs of suppresion.
It's a back n' forth story he tells as well, as the struggle of the spanish anarchists to establish themselves at the front for social change ("not tomorrow, now!" said the pickets at the massive protests and demos) was often sunk in blood, often thrown back by mass executions, often took a step backwards because the need for biological survival took a priority or simply because disapointment would momentarily settle in before a new spark would "detonate" the movement again.

The history of the spanish anarchists is remarkable in more ways than initially obvious. In a very intense sense it proves that the philosophy of anarchy doesnt demand from anyone to be well educated in order to comprehend it. "Absolute" freedom is not a complex concept and everything that derives from it is equally simple. It doesnt recquire reading bulky volumes of economic politics that lead nowhere nor trying to improve a system within which has already failed from the get-go (capitalism). It demands the "impossible" but simoultaneously the natural.
While Bookchin writes in a rather heavy style that wont easily grab you, he's an incredible historian who leaves no stone unturned in his effort-mission to explain thoroughly a historical event. That is my only objection to this book.

Other than that, this is more than recquired reading for anyone interested in anarchism (here, its history )or in examining political philosophies in general.It would help if you started from Emma Goldman's "Essays on anarchy" before this if your knowledge of this philosophy is somewhat superficial.

The generally rave reviews are accurate, this is a first class book. I just wanted to add that the 2nd Edition is a notable upgrade over the 1st Edition. The newer edition contains more information with more photos than the 1st Edition. Even the quality of the paper used is better. I bought the 1st Edition early on, and was hesitant to spring for the 2nd Edition, but it's well worth the price. Of course, if you haven't bought the book at all, what are you waiting for? A classic among gun books.

Es un libro muy entretenido donde se muestra la historia y raices de las fábricas finas de armas españolas

If you like learning about "best guns" this book is a must! It is the authority on the finest shotguns made in Spain. Very informative and lots of pictures. A+++++ reading for the informed shotgunner!

This single volume contains a wealth of information about the history, development and current status of all the famed gunmakers of Eibar and the surrounding region. First hand interviews with key personnel in each company add in house credibility to his analysis. I:t ius a must have for the serious collector.

"Spanish Best" - The Fine Shotguns of Spain. Second edition.

Despite some minor faults, this is a very worthwhile book, both an enjoyable read and an informative source of reference. It details the recent history of Spanish gunmaking in its capital - Eibar, and its surrounding area. It also contains a tourist guide for a first-time visitor there. Illustrated with a large number of colour plates, most beautiful and many showing the quality of the fine gunsmithing available in Spain. It is competently written by a writer who has a deep knowledge of the Spanish gun trade and who clearly loves his topic. All the key aspects of current Spanish shotgun manufacture are detailed, in addition to history, materials and general information. The editing leaves a little to be desired and the title choice is unfortunate, as the writer covers far more than "Spanish Best" shotguns, including among other topics a brief chapter on Spanish express rifles.

The book appears aimed primarily at the American aficionado and, while it takes for granted that the nuances of a Kersten fastener or the Bessemer process are understood, it assumes that the reader has no knowledge of Spain or the Basque region, no Spanish language skills and no knowledge of Spanish history or culture. It gives a potted history of Spain's Basque Region, its food, politics and the Spanish Civil War, which, while succinct and as accurate as broad brush-strokes can be, intrudes somewhat on the flow of the book and contributes little to the narrative. Indeed, any future edition would be better off with this information moved to an appendix. Any intending traveller would be better off buying appropriate travel guides for the region (e.g. Michelin Green Guide), though it is best not to expect too much by way of information on Eibar, a minor town with nothing to interest the casual tourist.

All the main manufacturers are covered, in a very egalitarian fashion, with about 15 pages devoted to each, be they Arrizabalaga, Arrieta, Grulla or AyA. An owner, like this reviewer, of an Arrizabalaga, judged by many to be the "Spanish Best," will not be disappointed but may wonder why they do not warrant more space. Kemen merits only five pages, but then its products and history are more recent. For some readers the book will lack definitive opinion such as why some artisans follow specific designs, or why a Purdey or Holland patent is preferred to a Boss (or the contrary.) Throughout, the book is sprinkled with many interesting details, contrasting, for example, the English and Spanish approach to machinery, the manufacturing process and its timespan.

Generally, books on guns can be divided into those for the educated shooter and those for the gun freak. Educated shooters have the "eye" to recognise beauty and are sufficiently technically proficient to understand and appreciate quality workmanship. The gun freak is an obsessive type, prepared to argue forcefully and at length about such matters as the correct number of pins for a sidelock, the procedure for an oil-rubbed stock finish, or discourse on the best type of bone to provide case-colours. Although this book falls into the category for the former, both will find sufficient to interest them. However, there are no secret recipes or processes divulged, nor are the technicana of engraving nor stock checkering discussed in any significant detail.

The forty or so pages of appendices include a bibliography and a useful dictionary of the various gun parts with diagrams, both English/Spanish and Spanish/English, all of which will facilitate and educate the speaker of basic Spanish. Serial numbers, dates of manufacture and proof marks are also covered. Also, there are essays on buying a gun and gun fit.

Despite its few shortcomings, this book is an informative and enjoyable read and in my view definitely merits a place in the library of any keen shot. It certainly would make a very welcome present for the owner of any Spanish gun, particularly a Spanish Best.

This book is hilarious!! I laughed out loud through out the entire book. Tim writes about his Camino de Santiago journey with a donkey starting with donkey basics - like being scarred to death of the donkey - to learning about it's basic care and feeding. From there he sets out on the journey and records the reactions of other pilgrims and of local Spanish towns people to his donkey.

I have since tried to get "into" some of Tim Moore's other books. Yeah, they're funny, but it was this book that sent me over the edge laughing. If you enjoy Tim Moore's books, buy this one!!!

For those of you seeking serious books about the purity of a spiritual journey while making the pilgrimage to Saint Jame's Field of Stars - there's lots of good books out there - but this one, though completely irreverent, tells it like it is/can be. I met a couple in Santiago de Compostella that had just finished the walk and their main impression of the walk was that it was a real Peyton's Place. If you are the serious type, reading this book before you go may just save you some disappointment during your own walk, or at least prepare you for the less spiritual side of the walk.

What possesses a completely urban Londoner to want to walk 500 miles across northern Spain... with a donkey named Shinto? Herein lies a tail, er... tale of self discovery and adventure through torrential rains (no rein puns here!) sweltering heat and encounters with religious and secular pilgrims (peregrinos, en espanol) on the Camino de Santiago. This ancient Christian pilgrimage crosses northern Spain from the French Pyrenees to Santiago de Compostela, resting place of St. James, patron saint of Spain. On opening this wonderful book you find yourself in the company of a person and donkey you enjoy spending time with. Smart, funny and a keen observer of people, Tim Moore's humanity suffuses this book and makes you feel the value of compassion. This is also one of those books that earns you inquisitive stares in public when you laugh loudly at one or another of his unexpected observations. When you are done you can even say you learned somthing about the history of Spain. This is great light reading. - Marcos Dinnerstein, www.parlo.com

I read a number of books about the Camino de Santiago before I did it in July-August of 2007. They were either practical guidebooks or deeply personal memoirs. I'd begun reading "Travels With My Donkey" about two weeks prior to departing for Spain, but I didn't get past the introduction - too busy with preparations. I figured I'd read enough anyway, and I wanted to save what looked like a good book for post-Camino reflection. I'm glad I waited until after my pilgrimage to read "TWMD," because it was an excellent and uniquely humorous account that brought me right back to the Camino.

Mr. Moore first became aware of the Camino when he met a pilgrim on "a small boat in Norway." As is common with those who've walked the Way, the idea settled in his mind and bloomed after a period of germination. Also like the typical pilgrim, he began doing research and making preparations for the trek. However, unlike most of us he decided to bring along a donkey. After some searching, he finally found one named Shinto and committed to his adventure. He and Shinto were trailered to Valcarlos, Spain, and commenced their trek to Santiago one step at a time.

During the next forty-one days, Mr. Moore and Shinto experienced numerous adventures on the Camino. Shinto became somewhat of a focal point - most of the time for good, but sometimes for ill. The author soon discovered the difficulties involved in herding a somewhat truculent donkey, including health issues, finding enough food for both of them, and securing donkey-friendly accommodation. Even so, he persevered and eventually formed a bond with Shinto based on shared hardship.

"TWMD" reminded me a lot of Bill Bryson's "A Walk in the Woods," another humorous account of a trek along an old trail. Indeed, both books made me laugh out loud in some spots and cringe in others. However, since I was fresh off the Camino, I was actually able to identify with Mr. Moore's experiences. I loved revisiting familiar towns and fondly remembered (or no-so-fondly remembered) refugios. And I empathized with the author's trials and tribulations, such as blisters, prickly pilgrims, harsh climate conditions, and fast automobile traffic.

"Travels With My Donkey" made me miss the Camino, and it also made me glad to be a peregrino. Recommended for those contemplating the Camino, pilgrims who have already walked the Way, and wanderers in general.

Moore's sense of humor and his complaints get him to the Pas de Roman to visit the Spanish Santiago Cathedral over the Pyrenees from the Atlantic Coast of France. Along the way, we are all drawn into his contacts with other, serious and not so serious pilgrims; the landscapes; the hardships of caring for this donkey animal he starts the trip with not knowing or caring much about; the incredible overnight sleeping accommocations he encounters; the meals; the brandy; the elevations; rain and shale; bridges and cobble stones. Having driven alot of the trail myself without knowing much about what it was or what I was doing, I was tied into this wonderful and hilarious story every bit of the way, enjoying his cynicism and suspicion until he reached the pinnacle of Santiago for all his cold dismissal of the energy required to make this pilgrimage. I sensed he made quite a turn by the time he reached the end of the journey but then perhaps he'd started out more committed to personal spiritual reasons for the journey than I'd understood at the beginning. I LOVED the book, his hilarious ability to laugh at himself and his circumstances, his brilliant evaluations of others' situations, his cautious thoughtful spiritual tussles along the path and most of all the subtle way he slipped in so much of the history of that great period when the Crusaders were displacing the Saracens or the Muslims. The weight of the themes sneaks in on the reader as the book develops - there are so many twists and turns that this book would be a fantastic book club or academic assignment as it calls out for interaction among readers. Would it ever become a book tape? Would it ever become a play? I feel it should have wider dissemination. Great book!

Tim Moore has taken me on some extraordinary journeys in the past, from the Tour de France to the Monopoly board via the arctic deserts of Iceland, but I found this one easily the most enjoyable. If you don't fall in love with the infuriating but utterly endearing donkey he takes with him on this Spanish pilgrimage, I'll eat my cat...

De los libros mas interesantes que he leido es para repetir lectura
contiene las costumbres y codigos de honor de los tuareg mezclado con la leyenda de una caravana con valiosas riquezas perdida en el desierto.

Este romance contrasta valores culturais distintos, éticas diferentes e paisagens diferenciadas no que pensamos ser apenas um deserto de dunas. Mas o romance Tuareg é muito mais.
Gacel aprendeu com seu pai a não matar mais do que uma gazela, mesmo que demore três dias para alcançá-la, pois ele se refaria depois destes três dias, mas nada devolveria a vida de uma gazela morta inutilmente.
Os "homens azuis" têm um significado muito profundo de hospitalidade. Aquele que é acolhido sob sua tenda tem a vida e a liberdade garantidas em todos os sentidos. E é exatamente por isso não ter acontecido que Gacel sai numa busca da recuperação de seu hóspede e da justiça do "olho por olho" para o outro hóspede que perdeu a vida. E ele vaga pelas mais diversas paisagens do deserto, aplicando a sua ira aos que lhe tiraram a honra da hospitalidade. O final, surpreendente, eu deixo para os futuros leitores. Mas o conhecimento minucioso do ambiente, a comparação de culturas tão diferentes, e o determinismo dos ocidentalizados em relação à vida da cultura tuareg traz à tona uma reflexão e um incômodo sobre o destino semelhante a outros povos de culturas tão diferentes. Toda a sabedoria acumulada por tantos séculos se esvai diante de riquezas no subsolo (ou na superfície).

Excelente obra literaria que lo llebara a conocer como vive la gente el descierto; y a comprender como pueden amar simplemnete ese mar de arena.

I read this book in German when I was living in Europe... it is a WONDERFUL story, and I shipped the book back to the States when I returned, and I still have it... I would so very much like to share it with other people but I can't because it's not available in English... WHY NOT????? You can't sell it if people can't read it... it truly DESERVES to be translated as have been other books by this author.

Tuareg is a really really well written story about a Tuareg inmouchar (venerable leader, somewhat below a Prince among the Tuareg) whose life is turned upside down as he sets out to avenge the abuse of his guests, protected by the millennia-old laws of hospitality and tradition of his people, when the world outside his desert comes to claim them back. With him we drink of the Sahara desert, "The land to be crossed". Together we surprise his enemies in his crusade to restore his honour. We learn to survive within ourselves in this beautiful, unforgiving and misunderstood expanse of the world.

I think Sabato is one of the best writers of our times. I'm reading his books again and again and this experience is always incredible.

I want to know if his last book was translated in English or in French...I can't wait to read it. I'm afraid, also, of what Ms. Sabato has to say in the end...Probabily I will rate it with 5 stars...

If you have informations about the translations of Antes del Fin, please contact me at: diana.lefter@flonetwork.com

Someone said here in Colombia that "Antes del Fin" bears witness to a century that is passing away. We've been told that ultimate realities are a sort of nonsensical by-product of the Western culture. Well, here is one of the greatest wise men of our century taking us back to ponder on ultimate realities. What is worth to live for? This type of questions (Hollywood hates them) led Sabato's life into the battlefield of authenticity and honesty. May the young people, especially of Latin America, be so sensible as to pay a serious attention to a voice that definitely is yelling in the desert.

He leido este libro y me gusta mucho, porque Sabato me parece muy sincero, habla de sus errores en su juventud, y de cambios en sus filosofias personales. En Buenos Aires en 2001, este libro fue tambien disponible en unas tiendas como un "audio libro," (libro para escuchar), leido por Ernesto Sabato. Despues de leerlo, tambien lo escucho. Es muy interesante de oir su voz. Frecuentemente escucho este libro (mas de 15 veces).
This is an excellent book in the form of an autobiography with a filosofical and humanistic pulse, describing his stormy moods, passions, ideals, and beliefs lived during his artistically inclined youth, and their changes from middleage to his old age.

Ernesto Sabato is one of the leading moral lights of the 20th century. His novels 'El tunel', 'Sobre heroes y tumbas', and 'Abaddon el exterminador' will stand as monuments to the pain of the searching soul. His essays, too, although oftentimes metaphisically obscure and highly idiosyncratic, are interesting and can generate considerable and fruitful debate. Now, with 'Antes del fin', Sabato offers us some ruminations from the perspective of a long life (he is close to his 89th birthday), a very personal testament to an age that appears to have lost perspective of the apocalypses that is bringing upon itself by promoting selfishness and wastefulness.

Although I agree with Sabato's indictment of the terrible things that are happening around us, I find his invocation of the 'Absolute' quite uncomfortable. It seems that, in his old age, Sabato is trying to look for a 'deity' that would save us all, that would give meaning to our lives, and he calls it the 'Absolute'. I would have thought that, after all these years of suffering and searching, Sabato would have found more answers, and hope, in simple human beings than in the highly questionable grail of the 'Absolute'. Evidently, however, I was mistaken. To me, as to many humanists, it's not a matter of an ultimate goal, of reaching the 'Absolute' in one's every action; it's, simply, a matter of realizing that we are all human beings with the same basic necessities, just one species among millions, and that we should respect everybody and the world around us just for that. No invocation of a deity is needed; no 'Absolutes' are required. Sabato is, I'm afraid, painfully wrong and dissapointing on that account.

Even though I enjoyed the book, with its gripping prose, I must admit that I didn't learn much about Sabato from it. To me, the powerful and real Sabato is in his novels, particularly in 'Sobre heroes y tumbas'. However, if you haven't been introduced to Sabato's world, 'Antes del fin' would be a good introduction. Only on that account I recommend this book.

Acabo de leerlo de una sentada y es quizá el mejor relato de una vida dedicada a la búsqueda del sentido de la vida misma que haya leído. La honestidad, la pasión, el amor, la amistad y la lealtad, el servicio a los demás. La búsqueda de la utopía, la denuncia de la realidad imperante y de la injusticia, venga de donde venga. Todo esto narrado por este gigante de las letras y de la humanidad de una manera enternecedora a veces, vigorosa en otras: Sabato, que sería de nosotros sin testimonios de luz como el tuyo!