Face of Spain

Spain, 1949. War in Europe is over. The brutal, confusing, almost incomprehensible Spanish Civil War is history, but not distant history. Franco's Falangist Party still rules Spain. Gerald Brenan knew Spain well. He lived in the Andalusia region in his youth. Years later he and his wife returned and bought a home in Southern Spain. But in 1936 they fled as Civil War erupted. In the spring of 1949 they returned as visitors. The Face of Spain is an extraordinary account of their travels through central and southern Spain. Gerald Brenan's fascinating examination of a country and people that he admired and loved should be read by all students of European history, and by all who love to travel.I was saddened by much of Brenan's account. But I was also enthralled by his observations, by his sense of history, and by his sensitivity to the Spanish character. I felt a sense of loss when I read the final chapter and realized my journey had ended. The journey begins in Madrid and then wanders leisurely through Cordova, the hill towns of Andalusia, Malaga, Churriana, Granada, La Mancha, Badajoz, Merida, Talavera, Toledo, Aranjuez, and ends once again in Madrid. Brenan gives the reader a sympathetic, but objective look at Spain. We become a part of Spain's colorful sunsets, its baked landscape (Spain was witnessing an extreme drought), and its complex heritage shaped by Romans, Visigoths, and Arabs. I was especially intrigued by Brenan's personal encounters with the indomitable Spanish people, and their individual stories of life in postwar Spain. The Face of Spain is sometimes somber, sometimes sympathetic, sometimes critical, and sometimes exuberant. I will undoubtedly return to Brenan's Spain again. It is exceptional travel literature and fascinating history.