Rating: 
Summary: Blindness and bias distort a good read
Review: David Rengel said it all. However, most of the political material is concentrated in chapter 14, and if you skip it the book is a pleasurable compendium of all things Basque. Its bias and chauvinism are, if you know any Basques, part of its charm; Basques have the reputation of being braggarts and, as the book points out, they have a lot to brag about. But chapter 14 throws the whole thing out of whack by displaying a (wilful?) blindness to what ETA and the abertzale movement are all about. It makes me wonder that an author who has so keenly pegged the fascism of Franco is unable to see the fascism of ETA, for that is surely what it is: the rule of fear. Also that a journalist could fail to mention that his fellow journalists are in ETA's gunsights; just last week another was shot down at his front door for having had the temerity to criticize ETA in print. This is not a romantic group of dashing freedom fighters, but a small, obnoxious cadre of totalitarian thugs who only know how to argue with bullets and bombs. Kurlansky's indulgence of them is shameful. The treatment of the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) is also slanted and fails to make the connection between the (as Kurlansky admits) racist rantings of its founder, Sabino Arana, and the exclusionist diatribes of its current leader, Xabier Arzalluz, who for all the world sounds like one more xenophobic politician in the Jean-Marie LePen or Radomir Karadjic mold. The PNV signed accords with ETA which were meant to open discussion of who had the right to be considered a Basque and thus be able to vote (and/or live?) in the Basque country. Arzalluz has said on occasion that only Nationalists fit the requirements. If you're looking for another round of ethnic cleansing to begin anytime soon, watch the Basque country. And wait for a more balanced account of its woes.
Rating: 
Summary: Finally....a tribute to Euskadi
Review: I have a Basque maiden name (Echazabal, or "big house" in the Basque language) and I loved this affectionate history of the traditions and tenacity of the Basque. Their unfailing courage and their ingenuity are amazing. Kurlansky obviously loves the Basque and their ancient culture and, if you don't mind a few recipes mixed in with your history lessons, this is a very entertaining book. My only complaint is that the complex history of the ETA is given short shrift in the latter chapters. I would have loved more on the people in the ETA, more on the unique Basque language and even a few more recipes. This is a fun book that could have been longer.
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Summary: Basque history of the world
Review: This is a very informative book about Basques history and culture. It is amazing how much influence this small group has had in the world. The recipes sound good, but probably many vital ingredients are unavailable in the U.S.
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Summary: Not a sheepish people.
Review: If you don't mind a little historical romanticism a la Michener, then you will probably greatly enjoy this fine introduction to the Basque people. I frequently travel to Northern Nevada where I've met many Basques and eaten at most, if not all of the Basque restaurants there. Yet when I rave about these places at home, a blank look appears on most faces followed by the question "What is a Basque?" Kurlansky's book goes a long way toward answering that question and shows how the Basque, despite not having a formal country, has been able to hold on to language and culture and to have an important influence on the development of the Americas from Argentina to our American West. Intertwined in his easy to read history are all sorts of fascinating tidbits about this little understood people. I only wish that there was more about the Basques in America because it is they who have given the most flavor to the western Great Basin. After reading this book, you will surely want to know more. If you can't make it to Euskadi, check out the Basque Festival in Elko or go by J and T's in Gardnerville and ask Marie to sell you a "Nevada, so many sheep, so little time" bumper sticker and then enjoy a Basque feast.
Rating:
Summary: Approval from an American Immigrant
Review: Here is a book which I--an American with no Basque ancestry, who immigrated to the Basque Country 25 years ago--recommend to family and friends who want to understand the people whom I have become a part of. This is not a book for those of us who live in Basqueland, as Mr. Kurlansky calls it. Basques of all political hues will find bones to pick and hairs to split as none are portrayed in a totally favorable light (Note the vehement criticism of many readers of Basque extraction). Despite omissions and some erratas, "A Basque History" provides a perceptive glimpse of the Basques and the contrasts and tensions of life in our little corner of Europe. Attractively packaged popular history, this is the best work on the Basques I have come across in English.
Rating:
Summary: A biased and irresponsible book
Review: Kurlansky offers a romantic view of the Basque history and culture. A romantic view that has always been, and still is, in the root of the Basque nationalism (and, perhaps, of all nationalisms). There is nothing new here. It is old tale about the fight of Aitor, Amaya and the candid and dignified Basque people against their evil neighbors. It is the old tale invented by nationalists at the end of nineteen century. Kurlansky connects with this literary tradition, that had been interrupted for almost a century, but that had been transmitted by word of mouth. I have heard myself some of these tales from my Aita, my Ama or my Aitite. As a tale, it is fascinating. Any reader who do not know about Basque history, or who is willing to accept the book as a romantic tale, would find it very appealing. But as history, it is tremendously biased. However, the worse of the book are the political implications that the author tries to extract from the romantic tale that he heard and was delighted to believe as true. Personally I prefer soap operas. Nobody kills for them.
Rating:
Summary: The Joy of Basque-ness
Review: Although I found some fault with Mr Kurlansky's political and historical perspective, I was quite moved by his portrayal of the Basque people and culture as they exist in the modern world. As a Basque-American, I consider it a tremendous privilege to experience the exuberance and joyfulness with which Basques celebrate family, food, faith, community, song, and life in general. I believe Mr. Kurlansky's work showed great understanding and appreciation of this very central characteristic of our culture.
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Summary: An entertaining introduction to a little known Nation
Review: Kurlansky loves the Basques, and certainly the image of Basques as an ancient people, with a legitimate place in the modern world, who just want to be left alone by all of the "big" nations. He makes a reasonable case for this having been an historic approach by this nationality for nearly two millenia. It is a popular perspective in today's complex, over media covered and impersonal world to present various people as "just wanting to be themselves, and understood within their own [limited] context." Therein lies the weakness of Kurlanshy's book: lack of objectivity, evident even to one as ignorant about "things Basque" as I am. That minor shortcoming aside, the book flows beautifully. It entertains, and enlightens. I assume that his facts are supportable. His interpretations lean toward the romantic side, while offering a number of insights into European History. Americans are famous for championing underdogs, to the point where we spend $3 Billion per year supporting Israel, so it is logical for Kurlansky to take the side of this indomitable ethnic/linguistic group. Obviously, some will disagree with his characterization of facts, particularly readers from Spain, whose own reaction is colored by ETA's less that genteel approach to Spanish government. For the emotionally uninvolved reader, this book is a wonderful introduction to what "Basque" is. For someone with a more serious interest in "things Basque," Kurlansky should be on their reading list, along with works by French and Spanish authors who take positions both pro and con. For the average American, there is a lot to learn and enjoy here. So read it- you will enjoy it.
Rating:
Summary: Keep to the Culture and Listen to Consensus
Review: Kurlansky's chronicle offers an interesting brush over Basque cuisine and customs contaminated by a biased and incomplete rendering of Euskadi's political history and consensus. While the author illustrated adequate skill in capturing the tastes, smells, and scenery of the Basque country as an observant, curious tourist, I found his one-sided view of Basque nationalism rather offensive. As noted by other readers, the author makes little effort to portray the peaceful Spanish-Basque in the latter part of the book, but rather highlights the violent aspects of Basque nationalists that represent a small minority of the population. The author himself laments that international attention towards the Basque Country is solely related to terrorism, however the author's rendition of Basque political history does little to remove this focus. If Kurlansky subtracted the political motives from the book, and kept to the culture, it would have been an excellent reading for those unfamiliar with the Basque Country.
Rating: 
Summary: Above right and wrong: A superficial manifesto
Review: Mr Kurlansky tries to convince us that despite the brutality in their means, there is an historical reason for Basques to fight their enemies: Spain and France. No need to say that he uses the term Basque when he should have written Basque nationalists, a mistake that many nationalist people would not even notice. Unhappily, this way of thinking is very common among intellectuals who are keen on being above right and wrong: "they are certainly brutal, but there must be a reason for what they are doing. Otherwise, they would not do it. Let us investigate". And the author did so superficially and, apparently, he only listened to people who told him what he wanted to hear, feeding his hunger for a romantic fight to be part of. At the end, the way the author writes our history, the fact that some crucial moments in recent history are simply ignored, the absence of non-nationalistic points of view and the lack of discussion make the book to be poor to me. Just to give an example,the most disgracful episodes in the Spanish democracy (GAL and another dirty state wars) are given the right treatment. On the contrary, fueling paranoiod thoughts, words like Hipercor, Gesto por la Paz, Bakea Orain, Miguel Angel Blanco, Yoyes, Ortega Lara or Julio Iglesias Zamora are not even mentioned. None Basque non-nationalist intellectuals such as Patxo Unzueta, Jon Juaristi, Fernando Savater, Agustin Ibarrola are mentioned or quoted whatsoever. Even Txillida is regarded as nationalist just because he designed the logo for Gestoras pro amnistia! He should have asked Txillida about this. What can you expect when, at the very beginning of the book, the author says that "Basque Country is too green to be Spain and to rough to be France". I call this ignorance, dangerous ignorance. As a Basque, broght up in Basque schools, and as a leftist progressive man that I am (calm down, I am not a PSOE suppoter at all: I dislike the third ways), this book is an absolute disgraceful nonsense.
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