Spain

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful, evocative writing in a layout of mixed quality
Review: Obviously, the most important thing about a book is the writing, and I've never yet found much fault in Jan Morris as a travel writer (I haven't read much of her history-writing yet). This book, first written forty years ago and re-released in 1988, is a lyrical work that focuses much on the soul and spirit of Spain and her people, as well as on the history and geography that are so much a part of that soul and spirit. It's entertaining, enlightening, and evocative -- even if you can't help but wonder how much, if any, of it is still relevant today.

Unfortunately, there is much merit in the Publishers Weekly criticisms of this edition. The type is indeed set very small -- and even with the wide margins on most pages, can be decidedly, if unconsciously, hard on the eyes. Interesting as the writing itself was, I sometimes found it hard to keep motoring ahead through the difficult layout. Cecilia Eales' watercolors do add a lighthearted and colorful element to the text-heavy pages, while the contemporary oil paintings, sometimes referenced in the text but often not, add an extra historical dimension. This book could have been about 50 pages longer, just by using a larger type size, with much greater prospects for readability and enjoyment.

In all, this is still a fine book for getting a glimpse into the heart of Spain -- at least as one non-Spanish writer saw it some time ago. Poetic and soulful as well as informative, it strikes me as a good introduction to a nation still much removed from the thoughts and experience of most Americans.