¡Guerra!: Living in the Shadows of the Spanish Civil War

by Jason Webster

As in his acclaimed Duende and Andalus, Jason Webster journeys across Spain, this time to explore the lasting effects of the Spanish Civil War. Could the divisions that led to the conflict still be simmering under the surface, and is it possible they could erupt again?


From the Hardcover edition.

Genres: Spain, History, Travel, Nonfiction, Spanish Civil War, Memoir, War

309 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Jason Webster is a highly acclaimed Anglo-American author and authority on Spain whose work ranges from biography to travel, crime fiction and history. His books have sold in over a dozen countries, including the US, the UK and China, and have been nominated both for the Guardian First Book Award and the Crime Writers’ Association New Blood Dagger Award. He has been favourably compared with writers such as Bruce Chatwin (The Daily Mail), Gerald Brenan (El País) and Ernest Hemingway (Sunday Telegraph).

Webster was born near San Francisco and brought up in the UK, Germany and Italy. After finishing a degree in Arabic and Islamic History at the University of Oxford, he worked as an editor at the BBC World Service for several years before becoming a full-time writer and moving to Spain. He is married to the flamenco dancer Salud and they have two sons. They currently divide their time between Valencia and the UK.

Reviews

[Pauly · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant introduction to the Spanish Civil War, with much on how the war is seen today. Very well written.

I write this whilst on my way to Toledo at the beginning of a tour by the author.

[David Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this single-volume overview of the Spanish Civil War, intertwined with a travelogue as the author visits key sites of the conflict.

[Sam Romilly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book about the spanish civil war told from the perspective of an obsessed english man. He gives the history of the war in a series of very well told stories, whilst trying to address and comprehend the worsts horrors of the war by visiting the sites across Spain. Whilst having little sympathy for the facists he also documents the share of atrocities committed by the republicans. A good book to read to have an overview of the politics and personalities, but by its nature a depressing and sad view of the excesses of cruelty to which intelligent and civilised people can descend.

[Paul Read · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would have liked to give this book 5 stars but...despite it's honest and innocent investigation into Spain's turbulent past (and it's present expressions) a lot of the history reflected the standard approach to the civil war (Popular Front couldn't hold together a fragile democracy, Anarchist disruption etc). Despite this, the rest of it stands up well and Websters exploration of contemporary Spain more than makes up for the (inevitably) subjective account of the war.

[Teddy Finlow · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very interesting concept of the narrator's journey uncovering the lasting cultural impact of the Spanish Civil War. It's the first time I have learned of the war and the book provided a good, well written brief history of events. However I found the narrator really unlikeable. He comes across in multiple instances as a bit of a naïve idiot, and alot of his conclusions of both sides of the war are so painfully centrist it comes across as something that ChatGPT came up with.

[Oliver · Rating 5 out of 5]

After having read some of Brenan's work it was great that there was more information about the death of Lorca. Likewise, the information about Badajoz and Paracuellos was great. Really enjoyed this book!

[Hollowaxis · Rating 3 out of 5]

The parts about the war itself are good, well written historical accounts.
The personal story weaving in between the 'proper' chapters is insufferable.
This writer comes across as a complete boob. At least this has a suggestion section for further reading.

[Paul Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this but it is more a series of essays than a complete book. So a history of the civil war it is not. It does however provide some interesting insights to add to the many other books on the subject.

[George Croft · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting primer on the Spanish civil war and contemporary Spanish politics. for someone who is so fascinated with Spain, the author comes across as a bit of a wally, particularly not seeming to comprehend the hysteria surrounding El Classico

[Ian · Rating 5 out of 5]

very good .. goes quite in depth on what happened in Spanish civil war and had a few adventures himself in getting individual stories about it..

[Jean Hardee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was alright, had wanted to know more about the Spanish civil war for a while so readable and informative account of this, was less interested about the author's travels

[Emma Glaisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

If like me you know next to nothing about the Spanish Civil War this is an intelligent and not too complicated overview with present day reflections to break it up. Very interesting.

[Vincent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliantly evocative - amazing imagery conjured throughout. I loved it!

[Simon Tate · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great summary of the Spanish Civil War, mixed with a moving personal account of life as an immigrant in post-war Spain.

[Paul · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’ve picked up Duende many times while in book shops, but have never been convinced enough to buy it. However, while helping my brother redecorate his house he offered me a few books he was getting rid of, including Guerra and Sacred Sierra, by Jason Webster, the author of Duende.

A chance encounter with his neighbour in the mountains (Guerra comes after Sacred Sierra) leads Webster to look into the Spanish Civil war, and Guerra is his recounting of the events, intersped with his travels around his adoptive country investigating the events of 70 years ago, only some of which seem entirely relevant.

And that is the main reason I struggled with Guerra, Webster himself. His retelling of the civil war is detailed and uncluttered, giving great background into the events and their significance. However, his own travelling parts are both hackneyed and seemingly bland fantasy. Webster sets the scene up and when the inevitable happens there is no surprise or concern, or even interest, just a feeling that it all seems made up. While there are no reasons to doubt the veracity of the book, the retelling makes Webster seem incredibly either naive or extremely unlucky. From the mistaken arrest, the abandonment by the taxi driver, to the text book theft in the train station, it seems as if he has pulled out every cliche for a travel book, to make his own story as interesting as the war he is writing about. When he meets a jogger outside Castuera, where a concentration camp had once stood, the jogger tells him that someone in the nearby village saw a ghost, right where he was standing. I couldn’t make up my mind if it was ludicrous or just badly written.

The book picks up when he reaches Madrid and stays with his friend Kiki, who is by far the most interesting person in the book, and despite Webster claiming you can’t explain Kiki, he spends a great deal of time trying to do so. But Kiki is much more engaging and thought provoking than Webster. The scene where Pio Moa gave a speech to a room full of old elitist and students and whipped them into a frenzy was fascinating to read and Webster’s favour for Javier at the end was genuinely touching, but it wasn’t enough to rescue the book from a complete lack of interest.
(blog review here)

[Ballyroan Reads]

The author Jason Webster is an American living in Spain for 12 years at the time of the publication of this book. He is a travel writer and has written several books on different aspects of life in Spain and also several crime novels. “Guerra”, however, gives an account of the Spanish Civil War, the build up to it and its effects which are still felt today in Spanish society, sometimes under the surface but they are always there.

The author alternates between visiting important sites and cities from the civil war in the present day and examining the history and significance of these places in the past. He provides an accessible and fascinating account of this period in Spain’s history and mentions many well known people who in some way got caught up in the war: Ernest Hemingway fought on the side of the republicans before having to escape to safety in France, Federico Garcia Lorca, one of Spain’s greatest poets, was shot in the hills of Granada for speaking out against the Nationalists and Picasso’s most famous painting Guernica was inspired by the Basque town of the same name.

For anyone interested in Spain and its culture and history this book is a really great find!

More book reviews from library staff on our blog, BALLYROAN READS: http://librarystaffpicks.wordpress.com

[Jim]

A travelogue surrounding a research of the Spanih Civil War, it seemed that the author was trying to find examples of conflict that exist in today's Spain which might help explain why their civil war happened. So he constantly finds examples of where he's treated badly by bar staff, taxi drivers, policemen and Spaniards in general, examples of him not fitting in or being accepted by the Spain he's adopted and loves. Which was interesting, because most of these books want to tell how shite Britain and the British are compard to The Irish, Maldovians, Peruvians, The Irish, Yemeny, Italians, Iraqis, The Irish….in fact, Americans aside, we are our own worst adverts for ourselves. Nobody hates us more than us, let's emigrate to a ramshackle cottage in Provence where the lifestyle, the food, the sun and the people, the wonderful, wonderful people….Yes, I liked it better when the greasy wop in the taxi drove off and left you because he thought you were gay.
Each chapter of personal recollection is interspaced with a brief history of key events in the Spanish Civil War, which was quite entertaining and informative in itself. Pretty good, but also a bit unfulfilling too.

[Sydne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Usually, if in any way possible, I try to read books on big historic events or wars by countrymen of the relevant country. It just feels more natural, more from within. Somehow also as if the person has the right to write these accounts more than an outsider.
I all too happily followed Jason Webster's accounts of the Spanish Civil War though. One reason is that he is very open about his position as an outsider and his writing feels very honest. In his style, he progresses from somebody who doesn't know much about the Spanish Civil War to someone that can write this history for us. He involves many Spanish friends and people he is put into contact with that can speak from their own accounts.
By doing so, we follow his learning curve very closely, which is a very interesting way of getting in touch with this dark part of Spanish history- and it works.
And actually- quite well.

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fist-fight described in the first chapter is quite a shock, and sets the tone for this excellent assessment of a search in modern Spain for the truth about the Civil War. Always a touchy subject in Spain, and one we never broach with our neighbours here, Webster stumbles on evidence near to his home north of Valencia. His journey takes him to key locations such as Burgos, Madrid and Guernica as he alternates chapters between now and the 1930s. His style is easy to read, populated as it is equally with an authority about his subject to an easy telling of his everyday travelling experiences. He gets under the skin of the real everyday Spain, the sort of places you get to only with fluent Spanish, an ability to ask awkward questions and no fear at hearing unpleasant answers. It makes me want to read all this other books about Spain.
For more about our life in Andalucía, see www.notesonaspanishvalley.com

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have just read through other people's reviews and I agree with the couple of people who have left comments - I'm skipping over quite a lot of the civil war history parts (because I prefer to hear about them from a proper historian and not a cut and paste from other sources) and quite enjoying the personal bits - although I think he is being a bit shifty about not knowing anything at the beginning. After 12 years in Spain that is a bit weird. The number of people who have put 4 or 5 stars on without commenting also looks rather shifty - I suspect a bit of an attempt to make the author look good.

[Claire Lawrence · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book if you want to get an overview of the Spanish Civil War. There are so many stories within the story of the war itself, such as what happened in Toledo, that it's a great place to get an idea of bits you might like to find out more about. I'm very familiar with Spain, and Spanish language and culture are passions of mine - I could definitely relate to some of his tales of Spain but it does paint an overall pessimistic image of the country in modern times! Slightly dubious as to whether he really lived the experiences he describes, but it doesn't really matter - I really enjoyed the book and definitely learnt something.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this genre of what I call "history travels", where authors write about the history of a person, place, or event, alongside their present-day visits to locations pertinent to that history. This is a pretty good entry in that genre. I learned a lot about the Spanish Civil War,of which I had known very little, so that accounts for my 4-star rating. His modern day travels were less substantive to me--he was mainly upset to find that his beloved adopted country has such a checkered past, and that elements of fascism still exist in pockets of the culture. He seemed kind of naive. But, I enjoyed his overview of the historical events and his stay with Kiki, his beautiful transvestite friend.

[Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three and a half stars. An engrossing book due to the nature of the events Webster recounts, and competently written and well- structured. He attempts to find a correlation between the terrible events of the Civil War and the darker side of contemporary Spain, through a series of personal anecdotes. These are interesting enough in themselves, but not particularly convincing evidence of any deeper or darker underside. Not all of his anecdotes ring true. Try "Ghosts of Spain" by Giles Tremlett for a thorough investigation.

[Deborah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book deals with the Spanish Civil War and its affects on modern day Spain. I found the treatment of the Civil war was rather dry and could not see how the parts that dealt with modern day Spain related. I think he was trying to say how Spain is not just a country of smiling peasants and paella. But I cant believe he has lived so long in Spain and only just found this out.

[Susan]

I like some of Webster's other books, but this one was just "ok". His look into the history of the Spanish Civil war. It dragged...