Wild Olives

by William Graves

In 1944, at the age of five, William Graves was taken from England to the delightful mountain village of Deya in Majorca, where his father - the poet Robert Graves - had returned with his new family to the place he had lived with Laura Riding before the war.Young William grew up in the shadow of this great writer in the Englishness of the Graves household, while experiencing the ways of life of the Majorcans, which had hardly changed for hundreds of years.Wonderfully observant, and full of feeling for the locality, this book is also a fascinating portrait of Robert Graves himself, his 'Muses', and his entourage, and a revealing study of how the son of a famous father finds his own identity.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, Travel, Spain

95 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[Tony Fitzpatrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

William Graves moved to the mountain village of Deya in Majorca with his mother and famous writer father in 1944, at the age of 5. He grew up there, briefly leaving after 13 for school, University and employment as a geologist. However on and off he continued to live there, raised his family, and ran of variety of businesses. He saw the changes in the island as it went from a sleepy agricultural backwater province under Franco's Spain, and became as it is now a tourist destination with many 5* amenities. This fascinating book is part autobiography, and part partial biography, of Robert Graves. Clearly he adored his father despite his weird behaviour and affairs. Living with such a creative man was a challenge, and his mother suffered much emotional abuse. William skips much of the latter part of his father's life when his senility clearly had a terrible impact on the wider family. Most interesting aspects of this book are the descriptions of 1940's and 1950's village life in the days before grid electricity, or of any real modern transport. The childhood he describes sounds very idyllic, and he even makes a very serious road accident (in which the eight year old nearly lost a foot) sound like an adventure. Robert Graves died in 1985 and is buried behind the house he built beneath a simple concrete slab.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are many threads in the book, what it is like to grow up with a famous eccentric father, life in a small Mallorcan village before the tourist boom and much more. I really enjoyed it, there was a lot detail and some of it was complicated and confusing. I was left feeling , “oh what and tangled we web weave” and wishing I had spent more time in the warm Mallorcan sun. I have visited the Deya area and hope to go again soon. Casa Robert Graves is on the list.

[Lorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Returned to read this book again after a break and loved every minute of it. William Graves can best be understood through the lens of existential phenomenology in writing this deeply personal account of his home in Deia, Mallorca. It is not presented remotely as a list points of interest and geospatial co-ordinates, but intimately as a part of his sense of self, rich with exploration from all the senses. At times when he had to live abroad, the need to come home was intense as reflected in the scene where he describes returning from a year in the USA (page 160), when he stopped at the bend in the road where you first see the Deia beaches and hills, got out of the car and paused, relishing the sense of being home before continuing to Canellun. William Graves suggests through the sound of the sheep bells, the cicadas, the guitars and laughter from a distant cafe, through the colours of the evening sky and secluded beach, through bringing us in the vehicle of the senses to his scene in each aspect of Deia life, how it became a part of his soul. Having spent time in Deia and Valdemosa, and loved Mallorca, I feel it through this beautiful account.

[Ted · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a lovely book, even for someone (i.e. me) who doesn't know much about the author's father, Robert Graves.

As the story of the first son by Robert's second wife, it misses a lot of Robert's earlier life, so is not really a biography of the father, it is that of the son.

It sort of reminded me of My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell as the story of growing up in a sun-filled foreign country and seeing the world through the eyes of the child rather than an adult.

I confess I read the book while I was in Mallorca and I visited Deia, where they lived, and perhaps that helped my appreciation.

[Michael Castro · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent memoir, which recalls the magic of his childhood in Majorca, where his father the author and poet Robert Graves had returned with his new family to the place he had lived with Laura Riding before the war.

He conveys vividly and with great feeling the texture of life in Majorca – the food, the pattern of the seasons, the camaraderie and rivalries within the village including the local gossip. This book is also a fascinating portrait of Robert Graves himself, his ‘Muses’ and his entourage.

[Hilary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating account by William Graves, son of Robert, of their family life in Deia, Mallorca. Perfect reading for a holiday in Mallorca. Tomorrow I will be visiting Deia and the family home which is now a museum.

[Liz Owen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this an interesting read, evocative of places struggling to deal with tourism and the changes it causes. Interesting too about families, and relationships.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this whilst on holiday in Mallorca so felt very real. Loved reading what Mallorca was like in the 1960’s and how it has changed.

[Simón · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wild Olives: Life in Majorca with Robert Graves collects the memories of William Graves, the eldest son of Robert Graves's second marriage, since their arrival to Spain in 1946 until the poet's death in 1985.

In the book, William Graves takes us with him as he grows up in Deià (spelt Deyá in the book), a small village in the Northwest coast of Majorca. He is in the company of his famous father, his mother, and two siblings, with a third one to be born later. There they live in Canellún (Ca N’Alluny), a villa R. Graves had built in 1932 and that he had to leave during the Spanish Civil War and the Second World War.

In a time span of nearly 40 years, W. Graves describes the post-war Spain, a country that no longer exists. Small local schools where physical punishment was common, empty "calas" (small beaches) to go swimming and diving, part-time generators powering the village, and a feeling of community that matches what any Spanish grandparents (or grand-grandparents) could tell about their home towns. Not to mention the influence of the local priest and other Francoist authorities.

There are frequent anecdotes and stories about R. Graves's personality: his oddities and extravagances, his following of "The White Goddess", his need for muses. However, this story is mainly about William Graves, and although his father has a very special place in it, it is William who we get to know, and William's idyllic view of Spain, not Robert. The other members of the Graves family basically play supporting roles.

Overall, Wild Olives: Life in Majorca With Robert Graves is a good summer read if you are interested in auto-biographies, if you want to learn more about how Spain was in the second half of the XX Century, or if you are interested in Robert Graves and his family. Since my interest in these topics is limited, although I liked this book, in the end I was looking forward to finishing it and moving on.

[Dannykenyon · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author’s genuine wonderment of Mallorca was the most striking element of this memoir. It gave me a feeling of somehow belonging to the island, via 20th century anecdotes of Deia locals, its technological transformation, social dynamics and of course rugged red mountains, flora and fauna, idyllic rocky coves and rustic wooden boats bobbing in harbors. It made me feel like I understood the island. A great accompaniment to our late summer holiday in Sóller.

[Montse Terés · Rating 4 out of 5]

Robert Graves's son tells about his life in Deia, and away from it, but always going back to his childhood's home.
Growing up in the shadow of such a well-known father had its ups and downs and William Graves tells about his good and bad moments throughout that process. He also tells about how the village and the people in it changed in all those years.
I found it a very interesting, readable book to get to know about the Deià and the Majorca of those years and the impact that people like Robert Graves had in it.

[Seth Lynch · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book, not really about Robert Graves, but the autobiography of his son, William.