Leaving the Atocha Station
by Ben Lerner
Lerner's novel chronicles the highs, lows, and existential dilemmas of Adam Gordon, a smart, if highly unreliable, young American poet on a prestigious fellowship in Madrid
España - A Brief History of Spain
by Giles Tremlett
Bestselling author and journalist, Giles Tremlett delves into the rich and varied history of Spain, from prehistoric times to today, in a brief, accessible and enjoyable account.
Love and Revolutionary Greetings: An Ohio Boy in the Spanish Civil War
by Laurie E. Levinger
Follow the story of a boy name Sam Levinger who travels to Spain in 1937 to join the Abraham Lincoln Brigade. Based off of letters home to his mother, this story will captivate and educate it's readers of the American involvement during the Spanish Civil War.
Madrid: the History
by Jules Stewart
Jules Stewart provides an insider's account of Madrid and unveils the history and culture of one of Europe's most fascinating, but least-understood cities.
Catalan Food: Culture and Flavors from the Mediterranean
by Daniel Olivella
Olivella masterfully combines typical recipes with historical narratives about Catalonia’s culinary traditions.
Hotel Florida
by Amanda Vaill
Madrid, 1936. In a city blasted by civil war, six people meet and find their lives changed forever...
Food and Wines of Spain
by Penelope Casas
This classic collection of 400 recipes, interwoven with cultural commentary and culinary history, is a pleasure to read, but prepare to become hungry.
Gaudi: The Life of a Visionary
by J. Castellar-Gassol
A chronological journey covering the life and works of Gaudi
A life of Picasso
by John Richardson
Richardson draws on his close friendship with Picasso, his own diaries, the collaboration of Picasso's widow Jacqueline, and unprecedented access to Picasso's studio and papers to arrive at a profound understanding of the artist and his work. (4 volumes)
Barcelona Map
by Borch Maps
A detailed city map, laminated and folded for easy reference.
Cadogan Guide Barcelona & Catalonia
by Dana Facaros
This savvy guide combines practical details and maps with illuminating background on history, culture and sightseeing.
The Shadow of the Wind
by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Set in the brooding atmosphere of post-WW II Barcelona, this gripping story-within-a-story has it all: murder, doomed love and a mysterious book which draws the young hero, Daniel Sempere, into the city’s dangerous underworld.
The Truth about Franco - Spain's forgotten Dictatorship
by Documentary
This documentary delves into the past and attempts to examine the almost forty-year rule of Spain's Generalisimo - Francisco Franco.
Gaudi, A Biography
by Gijs van Hensbergen
A vivid account of the architect and his work.
Barcelona
by Robert Hughes
This big, thoroughly enjoyable cultural history of the city touches on architecture, art, religion and literature from Roman outpost to the present.
The New Spaniards
by John Hooper
John Hooper's fascinating study brings to life the new Spain of the 21st century
Antonio Gaudi, Master Architect
by Juan Bassegoda Nonell
This lavish little collection of Gaudi's work captures the evolution, imagination and exuberance of one of the most influential architects of the 20th century.
The History of Spain - Land on a Crossroad
by Great Courses Documentary series
Professor Emerita Joyce E. Salisbury of the University of Wisconsin unfurls a broad and fascinating panorama of Spanish history, spanning the centuries from the first Neolithic settlement of the peninsula to Spain’s 20th century Civil War in this documentary series.
Cathedral of the Sea
by Ildefonso Falcones
Set in fourteenth-century Barcelona, Cathedral of the Sea is a thrilling historical novel of friendship and revenge, plague and hope, love and war.
The Struggle for Catalonia: Rebel Politics in Spain
by Raphael Minder
Minder, a journalist for The New York Times, provides a nuanced view of the independence movement. He explores both Catalonia's aspirations and the challenges of achieving independence, while also considering Madrid's perspective. An excellent resource for understanding the movement without partisan bias.
The Arts in Spain, From Prehistory to Modernism
by John Moffit
From the cave painting at Altimira through the Golden Age, to the works of Picasso and Miro, this book documents the course of art in Spain, with 150 illustrations.
Winter in Madrid
by C.J. Sansom
A vivid and haunting depiction of wartime Spain, Winter in Madrid offers an intimate and riveting tale that offers a remarkable sense of history unfolding
Homage to Catalonia
by George Orwell
Orwell's portrait of the Barcelona uprising and the spirit of a city at war is a classic, an observant and heartfelt report from the streets.
The Ornament of the World, How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain
by Maria Rosa Menocal
This book explores medieval Spain’s cultural fusion, with significant focus on Toledo’s unique role as a city of coexistence between Muslims, Jews, and Christians
Goya
by Robert Hughes
Hughes brings us the story of an artist whose life and work bridged the transition from the eighteenth-century reign of the old masters to the early days of the nineteenth-century moderns.
Ghosts of Spain
by Giles Tremlett
Tremlett captures the Spanish character, history and modern politics in this masterful portrait, interweaving the story of his love for the country (where he has lived for 20 years) with interview, anecdote and observation.
Spain: The Root and the Flower
by John A. Crow
An absorbing, well-written account of Spanish cultural history from prehistory to the Romans, Jews, Moors, Golden Age, and on to Franco and his legacy in modern Spain.
¡Guerra!
by Jason Webster
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?
Catalonia: A Cultural History
by Michael Eaude
Michael Eaude traces the checkered history and unique monuments of Catalonia through the ages
Made in Spain
by Chef José Andrés
Spanish Chef and philanthropist Jose Andres introduces the cuisine of Spain in this 13 episode series available on Prime.
Two Catalonias
by (Documentary)
A must see documentary on the divisions in Catalan Politics and the independence movement
Duende
by Jason Webster
Duende is Webster’s captivating memoir of the years he spent in Spain pursuing his obsession. Studying flamenco guitar until his fingers bleed, he becomes involved in a passionate yet doomed affair with Lola, a flamenco dancer...
The Hive
by Camilo José Cela
A daringly irreverent depiction of decadence and decay in Franco's Spain written by the 1989 winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature, Camilo José Cela.
An Englishman in Madrid
by Eduardo Mendoza
Anthony Whitelands, an English art historian, is invited to Madrid to value an aristocrat's collection. At a welcome lunch he encounters Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera, founder and leader of the Falange, a nationalist party whose antics are bringing the country ever closer to civil war.....