Iberia

In a sense no visitor can ever be adequately prepared to judge a foreign city, let alone an entire nation; the best he can do is to observe with sympathy. Travel writing is like love poetry. All travelers and lovers are convinced that their experiences are unique, and therefore worth writing abou......more

Trained Brain Explains Spain without Strain I'd never been to Spain, but after reading Michener's mammoth work on the country, I wished I had gone long ago. I have this sneaking feeling that the place has changed out of all recognition since he published this 795 page tome in 1968. Perhaps it has bec......more

Michener is, of course, a giant. Bridges at Toko-Ri was one of the first books I ever read. Somehow, I only read a few of his after that, Tales of the South Pacific, Chesapeake, and Texas. So, I’m no expert. But I can say this book taught me more about Spain than I learned visiting it or from a bunc......more

James Michener seems to have hated editing. Any hint of it. Whatever comes to his mind, goes, which is why this book can boast the length of "War and Peace". A picnic Michener had with a random Spaniard, one afternoon in Madrid, a description of a dish and a sudden recipe (one in the entire book), f......more

I decided to dive into this over the holidays, as part of an ensuing and voracious quest to soak up as many dimensions of Spanish culture as possible. I've long been a very appreciative fan of Michener's historical epics - this tome is no Chesepeake, Hawaii or The Source, however, all of which offer......more