Guernica

Dec 07, 2008 Kathleen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Since I never seem to have a lot of time to read "grown-up" books, I can be super picky about I will make time for. And if I can only get one "grown-up" book read this winter, I am glad it was Guernica!

I love it when a book sparks my interest in a subject that I never really took time to appreciate before. Leon Uris's Trinity lead me into learning more about the history and struggles of the Irish Nation; Manhunt by James Swanson opened my eyes to a period in our own history (and President) that...more

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Jan 23, 2012 Judi rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2012

Just when I was about to give up on this month's selection of $3.99 or less Kindle books on Amazon... I came across this one and decided to give it a try...

And... it is love at first sentence... "Justo Ansotegui returns to the market now to hear the language and to buy soap. He places bars in scattered dishes where he can catch their scent during the day, although they fail to mask the odors of the livestock that have lived in his house for generations..."

******

Finished this yesterday afternoon....more

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Jul 12, 2008 Elsbeth rated it 3 of 5 stars

Obviously, from the title of this debut novel, you know something horrible is going to happen but I was so mesmerized by the stories of the larger than life passionate and proud Basque characters that when it happens it almost took me by surprise.

Weaved through the bitter sweet and sometimes hilarious stories of two Basque families and their friends, there are short paragraphs on ‘real’ people such as Picasso, Luftwaffe pilot Von Richthofen and Basque president José Antonio Aguirre, all buildi...more

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Sep 10, 2010 Chrissie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: hf, kirkus, spain, text-checked

Page 221 read. April 26, 1937 has happened. Guernica has been literally levelled with 250 kilogram and incendiary bombs. Led by Wolfgram von Richtofen, the cousin of Manfred von Richtofen, ie the Red Baron. Total devastation. Difficult reading, but very well written. Only readable because some few human beings, although realisticly depicted, remain humane. And the chapter of destruction is relatively short. This reamains a 4 or 5 star book.

Through page 166. I definitely like the writing, the way...more Page 221 read. April 26, 1937 has happened. Guernica has been literally levelled with 250 kilogram and incendiary bombs. Led by Wolfgram von Richtofen, the cousin of Manfred von Richtofen, ie the Red Baron. Total devastation. Difficult reading, but very well written. Only readable because some few human beings, although realisticly depicted, remain humane. And the chapter of destruction is relatively short. This reamains a 4 or 5 star book.

Through page 166. I definitely like the writing, the way the author puts things. I am at the part before the bombing in 1936 - maybe it will get gruesom later. Maybe I will change my mind. Here is an example of what I like. One of the sons in the family, Xabier, is a priest. A women has lost her child to illness, and she asks how God could do this to her.

"Xabier decided he would embrase her and whisper his belief in her ear. 'I truly don't know how it could happen, but I ... I....she is in his arm's right now, where she feels no more pain, where she is whole and she is happy. And she is still in all of our hearts and can never be taken from there.' He would hold the woman then and listen to her sobs and absorb her tears with his shoulder until she was ready to withdraw, no matter how long it took."

An honest, compassionate priest, a good person. And some of the stuff is so amusing. Two wommen who were friends and lived across the passageway from each other had clotheslines between their houses. The author says:

"They were like twins, connected by laundry line. And on breezy days the Ansotegui and Navarro bed sheets and shirts and trousers and skirts fluttered together like colourful pennants."

I like this boook. I also want to read
The Accordionist's Son by Atxaga, and The Basque History of the World by Mark Kurlansky. These are all about the Basque people. I also have to read Salt a World History by Kurlansky.

How an author writes a book, the language he uses, is very important to me. Then I like learning too. If I can have both together - that is marvelous.
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Aug 11, 2011 Kat Lopez added it

I have never been a fan of Historical Fiction, until I finished this book. It very well described the impact of the Spanish Civil War to the Basques and the people around the world during that time. The first part of the story was mainly about the lives of the main characters followed by more named characters and different story lines adding up to the build-up of the plot.

The various integration of snippets about Picasso and his painting was a brilliant touch...very subtle and and the author mad...more

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Sep 27, 2010 Julie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical, fiction, signed, copy, 999, challenge, in, 2009, own

When I was in high school, I had the fortune and misfortune of seeing Picasso's Guernica at the Prado museum in Madrid. Fortune because I have seen one of the greatest masterpieces of art ever created. Misfortune because I was too young to fully appreciate what I was seeing. Yet, of that entire visit to the Prado, Guernica is the only painting I remember - vividly. It disturbed me and stayed with me, though I hardly knew why.[return][return]It seems no surprise then that years later I would fina...more When I was in high school, I had the fortune and misfortune of seeing Picasso's Guernica at the Prado museum in Madrid. Fortune because I have seen one of the greatest masterpieces of art ever created. Misfortune because I was too young to fully appreciate what I was seeing. Yet, of that entire visit to the Prado, Guernica is the only painting I remember - vividly. It disturbed me and stayed with me, though I hardly knew why.[return][return]It seems no surprise then that years later I would finally find a book to put that painting into its horrific context. What was surprising was learning so much about a place and its people that I'd never even considered before. The horrors of war are universal. The people, their culture and the land that is devastated by a single war are not. The author Dave Boling brings these truths together beautifully in "Guernica." I find myself now wanting to read more about the region, particularly in the years following the war. I want to learn more about these proud people who withstood so much.[return][return]The book started off a bit slow for me with so many characters, regions and towns to introduce. I was impatient to understand the significance of it all. However, once the story started moving I could hardly put it down for the suspense. One aspect I really appreciated was the depth of the main male characters, with all of their strengths, machismo, and frailties fully exposed. The female characters were a bit more uni-dimensional, but nonetheless served the purpose of "softening" the story. I almost laughed out loud when I read the following passage: "His slender wife approached pregnancy as she did all other endeavors, unsparingly and witih an energy that infected those around her... If pregnancy rendered some women too ill or uneasy to be intimate, it had an opposite effect on Miren, who became increasingly libidinous." I thought to myself, "Now there's a MAN'S fantasy about what pregnant women are like!" Maybe some of them are, too. Just not myself or any of the dozens of other women I've known who've been pregnant. [return][return]But I digress. Guernica is an impeccably researched, epic story about a place and time memorialized by Picasso, but still misunderstood by many, myself included. Boling's story will hopefully go a long way toward correcting that discrepancy. An easy four stars.(less)

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Apr 06, 2013 ★Loredana★ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ebbene sì, me ignorante: la parola "Guernica" per me non significava altro che il titolo di un'opera di Picasso, della quale sconoscevo però ogni dettaglio... avrei cioè saputo riconoscerla, ma non conoscevo la storia, nè del quadro, nè della città basca che ne ha ispirato l'autore. Questo libro mi ha portata a scoprire una pagina di storia, l'ennesima testimonianza di come siano i civili innocenti le principali vittime di ogni guerra.
Il romanzo si divide in due parti, il "prima" e il "dopo" il...more

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Nov 18, 2012 Michael Moseley rated it 4 of 5 stars

Billed as an epic story of love family and war. I seem to be drawn back to the Spanish civil war again and again. The story of simple folk’s powerful and enduring love. There is a since that I feel envious of the power of the love in this family. A simple life in which it would seem most people had a poor but happy life is ripped apart with a community that is raped of all its innocence. The destruction of a man who believed in his own strength and the ability to protect all that he holds dear....more

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Sep 26, 2012 Regina Lindsey rated it 3 of 5 stars

Promising piece of work from a debut novel.

As a child the school I attended had a comprehensive art history curriculum and Guernica always haunted me. Therefore, I was excited at the prospect of a historical fiction work set in this time period.

However, if you read this, you need to be aware that historical aspects of the conflict won't emerge until about 1/2 way through the book. The first part of the book has some allusioin to Basque history and there are some intersting cultural insights....more

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Apr 24, 2012 Col rated it 5 of 5 stars

Guernica had been on my "Waiting In The Wings" shelf for quite a few months before I picked it up and started it last week. Other books came in after it and yet were promoted to my hands before I read it, so it was a bit overlooked I guess. I think I overlooked it because I was worried it would be overly "clever" - and I made that irrational conclusion from doing the following very simple maths equation

Dave Boling is Washington journalist (and so very clever) + Picasso was a bit of a genius (and...more

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Mar 21, 2012 Ernie rated it 3 of 5 stars

I saw the painting, "Guernica", years ago when it was in MOMA New York. It was on loan until Franco left Spain. Now it is home in Spain. Incidently, as much as the mural is described, the book does not contain its image. (You will have to google it.) In conection with seeing the painting, I learned that there was a time when war was not inflicted upon civilians. However, the civil war in Spain in the 1930s was a place to test this new approach to war. --- Ironically, the book ends during WWII wh...more I saw the painting, "Guernica", years ago when it was in MOMA New York. It was on loan until Franco left Spain. Now it is home in Spain. Incidently, as much as the mural is described, the book does not contain its image. (You will have to google it.) In conection with seeing the painting, I learned that there was a time when war was not inflicted upon civilians. However, the civil war in Spain in the 1930s was a place to test this new approach to war. --- Ironically, the book ends during WWII when the Germans are bombing cities in England... and the English, Canadians and French are bombing cities in Europe. The author does not make a big deal about the sequence of these events. Maybe I have become accustomed to reading of all-out war such that the concept of Guernica did not seem remarkable and I read past the irony. Indeed, during the Vietnam war, when I saw "Guernica", the image was not unique.

When I was in college,in California, one of my roommates was a Basque descendent. His father had come over years ago as a shepherd. I don't recall when. Also, one of my professors, from Nevada, was the son of a Basque shepherd. They did not talk of the civil war. It never came up. Maybe it was their parent's history. But I knew they were not Spanish. They were from a unique people who had wonderful food and wine. Later I learned that the origin of the Basques is one of the great mysteries of anthropology.

The newspapers have always run stories of the violence of Basque separatists.

These three, very different, images of Basques play in my thoughts and without coherent resolution. ... as is the case for most things for me, actually.

However, this book provided some resolution. The author explains who the Basques are. It is fiction. It is a good story and a bit like the books Maeve Binchy writes about modern Ireland. Except the tragedy of Guernica makes it much darker. Like Binchy, this author weaves together the stories of diverse people, introducing them in a way leading to some sort of errant first impression followed by the fullness of understanding of the depth and humanity of the people. --- I don't know the history or the politics and the author does not dwell on these topics. They are described in a minimal fashion and then to illustrate the complexity and hopelessness of the situation. ---

The fictional characters are unique and I wonder how or why they are drawn. They are well drawn to highlight nobility, flexibility and compassion. The story draws in the reader to care about the people and anticipate their future. But that future is erased in 3 hours one afternoon. Guernica was not a fortified town. The attackers received no defensive wounds.

Two thirds of the book elapse before the bombing. The bombing is a small portion of the book. The final third of the book is about the aftermath. The book is about the Basques. The description of the bombing is graphic, horrible and short. Horrible because the author makes us care about the people and interested in their future. Some have no future. For others their future becomes quite different from anything imaginable. --- Like a Binchy book, there are some happy, feel-good resolutions... coincidences that are remarkable. But why not? This is fiction. (Since it is fiction, why can't the author create some feel-good remarkable coincidences?)

By the end of the book, the generation that suffered Guernica is replaced by a new generation of children... children who, sadly, grew up with bombs and are better able to deal with the new world than the generation shattered by Guernica.

Its a pity. But people and cultures are resiliant.

I enjoyed the book. I recommend it. It is an easy read like Maeve Binchy books. This one has the advantage of being historical fiction. It has a disadvantage in that the fate of interesting fictional characters is dictated by the historical events. Tough dance. I might have given it two stars, which is good for me (okay) but bumped it up because of my interest in the topic... another benefit of historical fiction, no?

PS: John Chinn and I took our friends, Dennis and Sharon, to "Elu's Basque" restaurant on Broadway in SF after the Bay to Breakers Run in the 1960s. I guess that was the first time I ever heard of the Basques.

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Aug 13, 2011 JamesMarinero Marinero rated it 4 of 5 stars

I visited Bilbao in 2000 on my boat, and coasting just a few miles from Bilbao to Castro Urdiales necessitated changing the courtesy flag from the Basque flag to the Spanish flag. 'Don't fly the Spanish flag when in Bilbao' was the verbal advice, contrary to the normal maritime convention. Whilst we were moored in Bilbao, we heard an ETA bomb explode near the University.

The Basques are an intensely proud race, the border between France and Spain is a fiction to them.

Read this novel and you will...more

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Jan 11, 2011 Mary-Helen rated it 3 of 5 stars

I went to Spain in 7th grade and I really do think the art, architecture, and history has been a part of me ever since. A highlight and privilege of this trip was our viewing of Pablo Picasso's 'Guernica'. Even at a young age I was moved. That is the reason I wanted to read this book-- to learn more about history through historical fiction.

I feel as though this book had a simply amazing beginning and gradual build-up to the actual bombing event. The characters were lovable and I was interested i...more

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Apr 04, 2010 Valerie rated it 4 of 5 stars

I just finished this book yesterday. But I bought it almost two months ago...and my friends know how fast I read! But it was so emotional for me knowing how it was going to end because I am somewhat familiar with the history behind the bombing of Guernica; seeing as I am of Basque heritage. The thing was that I became so connected to the characters, they were like friends/family! One of the few books I have been that emotionally connected to! The author, I think, does a good job of pulling you i...more

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Dec 28, 2009 Michele rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 20th-century, fiction, historical-fiction, personal-library, spain, wwii

On April 26, 1937, the German Condor Legion bombed the bejeesus out of a small Basque town in Spain called Guernica.
Hitler had "loaned" his deadly Luftwaffe to the soon-to-be facist dictator Franco who was battling for control during the devastating Spanish Civil War. No one knows for certain how many civilians died that day. Guernica had no air defenses and it was market day in the center of town. What is known is that the majority of the town was completely destroyed and a new age of attacking...more

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Aug 09, 2011 Lorna added it

Before I read this book, if you'd said the name 'Guernica' to me, I'd have said "a painting by Picasso". In that sense, Picasso's success as a painter of that particular picture, a comment (if that isn't too weak a term) on the destruction of Guernica in the Spanish Civil War, is also his failure.

Dave Boling's novel (his first) brings Guernica, the real place, back to the forefront. It sets out, in historical saga style, the history of one family in Guernica, headed by three brothers whose live...more

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Sep 15, 2009 Chris rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: lit-american, firstreads, lit-spain-portugal, historical-fiction-ww-ii

Guernica is not the type of book that I would pick-up on my own. It was offered on First reads, and since I enjoyed watching a program on the painting, I entered the drawing. Lucky for me, I won; otherwise I would have missed out on a very good book.

Guernica tells the story of two Basque families in the doomed town. Despite the summary on the back of the novel, the book is not a "romance" in the modern sense of the word, at least not in the sense of a romance novel. There are love stories in the...more Guernica is not the type of book that I would pick-up on my own. It was offered on First reads, and since I enjoyed watching a program on the painting, I entered the drawing. Lucky for me, I won; otherwise I would have missed out on a very good book.

Guernica tells the story of two Basque families in the doomed town. Despite the summary on the back of the novel, the book is not a "romance" in the modern sense of the word, at least not in the sense of a romance novel. There are love stories in the book, but the over-arching love story seems to that love that Boling has for the Basque culture. Boling's love drips from each word, and in fact, carries the book. It is one of the things that reader takes away from this book. In that way, the book is like a love poem.

Boling's style is more of telling than showing. At first, this slightly annoyed me, not enough to tempt to put it down, but enough for it to stand out. But then I wondered. It seems that Boling might be trying to capture the story-telling tradition that refers to several times in the book. I've never heard a Basque tell a story, so I don't know if this is something that Boling does, but after reaching that realization, the style didn't bother me anymore. Boling was also a reporter and that could affect the style as well. In particular, Boling's reporter skills seemed to be used very well in the prologue. The sights, sounds, and smells of the marketplace are captured and described so well that the reader feels as if she is reading a book in the marketplace.

While the style does take a bit to get use to, once the reader does, the characters are wonderfully drawn, and sympathetically portrayed. The reader comes to care about the characters, and to laugh with them. Miren, Miguel, Justo, Alia, and Dodo are brilliantly drawn. Boling's best writing appears in the section of the book that deals with the destruction of the town by German bombers. The whole sequence plays out like a movie. The reader can quite clearly see everything. It would be more exact to say it plays like a movie, but a good holiday movie, not a flashy war movie, but more like, say, Flame and Citron; a movie that tries to recreate the facts instead of use the truth for flash. This section of the novel is so gripping told it makes the reader weep.

Boling is brave because he does not end with the destruction of the town, but spends time describing the aftermath and how it affects those characters that survive. If you look at the book, it is broken into unequal thirds. One third about the events in the character's prior to the bombing; one third about the bombing; and one third about the aftermath. The build-up and the aftermath make up the greater part of the book. The aftermath is not a coda, but a real part of the story. It is not tacked on as some writers would have done.

It is true that this first novel is not flawless. Perhaps the weakest part of the novel is towards the ending of the novel. It doesn't destroy the novel, and it isn't a cheat, but it doesn't quite match the rest of the novel. I'm not sure why there seemed be a lesbian subtext. It was this sometimes subtext that seems to pop up at places that is out of place, not the presence of real historical figures such as Picasso. The real people add to the book; they are used sparely and not centrally. Additionally, could you imagine a book about Guernica that doesn't mention Picasso?

Boling’s novel succeeds due to the writer’s love and concern over the topic and his ability to capture and vividly portray details. It’s a good novel, an engrossing novel.
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Nov 27, 2008 Johnsergeant rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: audiblecom, audiobook, historical-novel

Narrated by Lloyd James
UNABRIDGED 13 hrs and 2 mins

AUDIBLE RELEASE DATE 10-09-08

Publisher's Summary
Calling to mind such timeless war-and-love classics as Corelli's Mandolin and The English Patient, Guernica is a transporting novel that thrums with the power of storytelling and is peopled with characters driven by grit and heart.

In 1935, Miguel Navarro finds himself in conflict with the Spanish Civil Guard and flees the Basque fishing village of Lekeitio to make a new start in Guernica, the cente...more

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Jul 02, 2009 F.R. rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The title gives away that something terrible is going to happen, and the attack by the Luftwaffe on Guernica is indeed the centrepiece of this disjointed book.

It's odd for me to read a novel where I feel iffy about the beginning and end, but like the middle. The beginning is too flighty and tries far too hard to create various Basque characters (or more acurately charcatures) in the way of an early Louis De Bernieres novel. While the last section feels a bit tagged-on and has an ending which is...more

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Jan 31, 2012 Louise rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: library, historical, set-in-europe

This was another of my random pick-ups in the library. It was only when I looked closer at the blurb that I realised this book was about Basque country, a place my great grandparents had left years previously to the books events. I had never known about Guernica aside from that there was a famous Picasso work bearing the same name.

This was one of the most moving historical fiction books I have read. I became very involved with all the characters. The first half the book sets up the character re...more

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Jun 08, 2010 Joel rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: inspirational-and-philosophy

One of the most moving pieces of historical fiction I have ever read. Having just read The Basque History of the World, this was great following book. But it would have been great anyway. Weaving incredible family bonds, Picasso (to serve as the structure of the history to present times), absolute bravery and intelligence of the French and Basque resistance fighters, and the little known (at least to me) generosity of British civilians and of course the bravery of the RAF, into a page turner is...more

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Jun 13, 2012 Jayne Bauling rated it 4 of 5 stars

A novel about the atrocity that prompted Picasso's mural, in which the characters beautifully embody the Basque nature which the landscape seems to reflect so evocatively.

These are independent, proud, tough people, endearing in their unpretentiousness and devotion to family. Having to be cautious about speaking their own language, their flag despised, persecuted for teaching their own history to children - and this was just under the Republican government, with the Spanish Civil Guard ever ready...more

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Aug 07, 2009 Dagmar rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: bookgroup

I learned all about Guernica – the area, the culture, the people, the events that took place there, and the painting. However, I didn’t find the writing very compelling, nor did a feel very attached to the characters. I wanted to know more about the main characters and their thought processes. The story is an interesting one, but could have been made more interesting by providing more insight into the characters.

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Jan 28, 2012 Abby Welker rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really, really, really liked this book. I couldn't give it 5 stars only because it wasn't one of the BEST books I've ever read, but it was SUCH a good story. There was a parental advisory when I got it off iTunes as an audiobook and I'm guessing it's because of the war scenes and maybe the {very} few sexual intimacy moments, which were barely even mentioned and completely non-descriptive. So the book isn't for teens, but it's definitely a book I'd recommend to any of my friends.

It was a pleasa...more I really, really, really liked this book. I couldn't give it 5 stars only because it wasn't one of the BEST books I've ever read, but it was SUCH a good story. There was a parental advisory when I got it off iTunes as an audiobook and I'm guessing it's because of the war scenes and maybe the {very} few sexual intimacy moments, which were barely even mentioned and completely non-descriptive. So the book isn't for teens, but it's definitely a book I'd recommend to any of my friends.

It was a pleasant surprise for me to find out that the story is based in my favorite WWII era. (I didn't read a whole lot about the description, I just wanted something to listen to and this looked like a suitable book) The story is based in the northern coastal area of Spain, next to the French border, in the Basque region. (I've had fun researching the Basque culture this week) The author does an incredible job of slowly aquainting the readers with the families and main characters in the book. I felt like I knew each one of them and delighted in their love of each other, their traditions, and their country. They were a happy people, they had thriving farms, they went to church, and lived a peaceful life in one of the most beautiful regions in the world. The story actually moves quite slow for the first half, but it's a very methodical way of helping us, as readers, to really understand the consequences of war.

Without divulging any spoilers, I will just say that I didn't realize how badly affected Spain was during the German takeover of Europe. I knew that they were in the middle of their own civil issues, I knew that they stayed neutral, and I read many stories about resistance workers smuggling Allied forces through the Pyrenees mountains, out of Spain and back to England, but I didn't realize that many parts of Spain were bombed before Germany began their campaign.

Not very many stories will reduce me to tears, but this one did - a few times. Though the story is fictional, it's historically accurate and we see how a pleasant existence can change so quickly. I'm actually sad that the story is over---time to find another good book.

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Mar 11, 2009 Mona rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book was amazing. It takes place in Pays Basque specifically around Guernica. Recently Charles told me that he read this line by a literary critic, "the best books are not about ideas, but about people." I scoffed at the idea. After reading this book, I think the critic might have a point. This book made me feel so many things. Love for the Basque people and their culture. It doesn't hurt that I spent a week in French Basque country in 2007 and had one of the best times of my life. Hatred f...more

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Sep 26, 2012 Huw Rhys rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Where do you start trying to put this book into some sort of focus? The author obviously struggled - and I'm not sure I'm going to be able to unravel too much of the conundrum he's created!

Firstly, you give a book the title "Guernica", and you're immediately limiting the possibilities of keeping your denouement under wraps. It's like giving something the title "Titanic", "Waterloo" or "The 1966 World Cup Final". You know the ending before you start - the art is how you take the reader to that en...more Where do you start trying to put this book into some sort of focus? The author obviously struggled - and I'm not sure I'm going to be able to unravel too much of the conundrum he's created!

Firstly, you give a book the title "Guernica", and you're immediately limiting the possibilities of keeping your denouement under wraps. It's like giving something the title "Titanic", "Waterloo" or "The 1966 World Cup Final". You know the ending before you start - the art is how you take the reader to that ending.

In a nutshell, Dave Boling takes us nowhere at all for the first third of this book, he crams a potential masterpiece into the middle section, and then he rambles on and on and on to try and set up an oh so obvious conceit for the final third of the book.

Should this have been a trilogy? It may well have worked better like this. The first bit still needed a lot more focus though - maybe a novel about the Basque way of life, and the particular threats to this way of life from the Franco regime could have properly sustained the first part of the story - it was hinted at throughout, but sort of disappeared as a theme when the Second World War came along - and what did the Second World War have to do with Guernica, and the Basques? Plenty, if the author had chosen to follow this topic.

The middle bit is good, verging on brilliant at times - but did anybody else feel that the opportunity to write the definitive "futility of war" novel was somehow missed, and instead we got something that was a little Sven Hassel, and a little Barbara Cartland instead? The irony of our so badly wronged main protagonists smuggling allied bomber pilots back to Britain – so that they could go and bomb more innocent civilians – was not pushed by the author. Did he even realize the dichotomy of what he was writing? It’s hard to see that he did.
Another strange little set of diversions was when we were briefly introduced to Manfred von Richthofen, whose cousin, Wolfram, commanded the Luftwaffe’s Condor Legion in the bombing of Guernica. All sorts of opportunities to contrast the almost chivalrous way in which aerial combat was conducted during the First World War and the way it had metamorphosed horribly into an agent of terror within 20 years were missed. By all means introduce these seemingly disparate characters – but please take every opportunity to try and make them relevant to the plot.
The same can be said about the frequent appearance of Pablo Picasso throughout the narrative. Picasso was commissioned to produce what became one of the great pieces of modern narrative art following the bombing of Guernica, and vast tomes of academic and critical debate exist on the interpretation of the painting; very little of this wonderful discourse is even touched upon in this novel.
So what do we end up with here? The ingredients for three rich cakes, and a couple of fondant fancies to display round the sides, all thrown in together, mixed haphazardly and thrown at a single baking tin for cooking? A lot of the substantive bits of the plot fall out of the tin and are missing, whilst a lot of the mix also doesn’t make it to the final tasting, leaving some of the juicier morsels floating in an almost unconnected way to the rest of the fare.
Having said all of that – the writing style is superb, and the whole novel is very easy on the eye. It isn’t a hard read at all. And the style changes appropriately to match the cadence of the narrative. There are so many good things about this book, it’s really hard to dislike it; but so many missed opportunities, it’s hard to praise it to the skies. In my ideal world, I’d really love to see the author revisiting it, concentrating on writing one, coherent and definitive story on the futility of war, and its harrowing effect on the innocents who get caught up in it. All the parts are already there to do this – it just needs some focus.
I will certainly look out for more books from Dave Boling – and I hope that next time, he has a clearer editorial steer with what he’s trying to achieve with his excellently written prose.
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Nov 30, 2009 Wanda rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2009, historical-fiction, fiction-and-literature, spain

Fabulous! I enjoyed reading this book tremendously. The characters were a bit one-dimensional - Miren was always dancing, Just was always strong, etc.; however, sometimes people in life are like this too - always one thing or another and not so much of anything else.

There is much to love about these men and their families. Yes, it is a story about men and their love for their families and the storyline captures all of this eloquently. So many times, we read books taken from the "female" point o...more

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Jan 13, 2010 Didi rated it 3 of 5 stars

I received this through a free Goodreads drawing.

This book is about life in Basque country in the years leading up to and following the bombing of Guernica.
The author did a good job sketching daily life in Basque in that period. There were disparate storyline that lead to each other in a satisfying ending. It made me want to visit that part of Spain (also because my brother really liked it there).
However, I have a few complaints. The characters, while great people in various ways, were rather un...more

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Apr 04, 2012 Jenny Grieve-laing rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Guernica is going on my 'favourites' bookshelf as simply one of the best books I have ever read! Most of us will see the title and immediately associate it with the bombing of Guernica in Spain in 1937 or perhaps the famous Picasso painting of the same name depicting the horror of war but Boling gives us more than that. We are shown, through the family of beautifully drawn characters, what it means to be Basque; their triumphs, traditions, struggles, sorrows and loves. The actual bombing takes u...more

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Jan 24, 2012 Renee rated it 5 of 5 stars

I just read this book and really enjoyed it. I noticed the title because I remember studying the painting "Guerica" in school. I tend to love historical novels and I liked that aspect of this book; as the other reviewers have said, you learn quite a bit about the Basque people. Although I also think you have to take what you learn with a grain of salt in a historical (fictional) novel. I think novels like this are great in combination with learning real history. It can give you a taste of what t...more

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title link	preview: Guernica
avg rating	preview: Guernica Goodreads rating: 3.89 (1439 ratings)
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Guernica

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