Customer Reviews

Iberia (Audiobook)

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This is not like most Michener books, which are generally fictional; this is his personal travelogue of his impressions of many travels all over Spain. It should be understood that it was published in the late 1960s and that much has since changed in Spain since that time. While 'Iberia' is normally taken (in the USA, at least) to incorporate Portugal, Michener is writing almost exclusively about Spain in this book.

Michener clearly loved Spain and knew many Spaniards as friends. He discusses Spain's history, culture, art, literature, dance, geography, sports, and spirituality. Rather than putting all that into nice neat little buckets, he weaves it all together to paint an entrancing picture of the Spanish soul as he knows it.

Unlike many such authors, Michener uses photos very carefully to illustrate aspects of Spanish culture, from the assuredly adamant eyes of the Guardia Civil to the warm smiles of the poorest people. He also takes a lot of time to explain words that are difficult to translate and what they tell us about Spanish culture.

Recommended with equal enthusiasm whether from the viewpoint of history, religion, culture, or art. Also of special value to those living in Spanish-speaking countries or regions with large Hispanic populations, as Spain's influence on those cultures, as a mother country, is readily apparent.

Bravo, Sr. Michener. Faltan mucho a Ud.

As an avid fan of Michener's fiction, I decided to pick this book up to see how Michener dealt with nonfiction. I can without hesitation say that Michener is at his best in this genre. "Iberia" is a stunning achievement of meticulous care and fascinating recounting of events.

His account of Spain, though dated now by thirty years, made me feel as if I were there travelling side by side with Michener. It is wonderfully detailed and always engaging. There are long sections that are just descriptions of art and architecture, and being the art philistine that I am, these became a bit tedious. Still, my appreciation of these passages came less from the art described than from the obvious passion with which Michener describes them...

This book is a must-read.

Although I have read literally thousands of histories, geographies, and anthropologies over the years, I had always avoided Michener thinking he was a "popular writer" not an academic. After reading 'IBERIA', I know now that not only is he popular but is a knowledgable and insightful observer and analyst. He writes about Spain in a personal yet authoritative manner and manages to cover most of the major themes of the Spanish way of life without being pedantic. The only shortcoming I would ascribe to this book is that being written almost 40 years ago towards the end of the Franco regime, the book, in parts, is dated by more recent developments in Spanish history, politics, and societal change. This, of course, is to be expected in a book largely a history of then contemporary Spain. Michener has given us a snapshot of Spain as he knew it during the 1930's, '40s, '50s and '60s. Although Spain has changed along with and in many cases more than other parts of the world due to not having changed much for so long, Michener's descriptions and insights remain largely accurate and relevant even for readers in the 21st century. Even if some anachronisms are included, they still hold interest as a description of how much Spain has changed in the 25 years since Franco's death.

an avid fan of Michener's fiction, I decided to pick this book up to see how Michener dealt with nonfiction. I can without hesitation say that Michener is at his best in this genre. "Iberia" is a stunning achievement of meticulous care and fascinating recounting of events.
His account of Spain, though dated now by thirty years, made me feel as if I were there travelling side by side with Michener. It is wonderfully detailed and always engaging. A note of caution the spain michenor describes is not present day spain,the book is more a passionate history.

This is not a Michener novel but a Michener personal travel journal about the Spain he traveled in for thirty years and knew very well. It is rich with information about all aspects of Spanish culture and life. Michener was a writer who loved people, and loved talking to them . And this book contains the accounts of hundreds of conversations on all aspects of Spanish life.
It describes in great detail some of the main areas and cities of Spain, Madrid, Cordoba, Salamanca, Sevilla, and the Entremurada region.
It gives a tremendous amount of detail on different kinds of food and places of accomodation.It is often in this regard very critical.
Michener is a very good writer but not a great one. And there are passages of the book which are very interesting but fail to reach a higher level of poetic inspiration.
A number of the set pieces in the book are truly wonderful. I greatly enjoyed his account of the medieval Jewish traveler Binyamin Mitudela and the comparison Michener makes between his travels and times and Mitudelas.
The book is dated in certain ways. It is of course not up - to- date politically. But also in attitude. I think no editor today would allow the passage in which Michener talks about why all young married Spanish women are fat and content. And how they know in the land of no- divorce their husbands will not leave them even though all the husbands definitely take more attractive women as mistresses.
Michener writes a lot about bullfighting a sport he admires. I however found many years ago in the one bullfight I attended a lot of cruelty. I think more people today would share my concern that the cruelty to the animals simply does not justify the glorious spectacle of the bullfight.
On the whole I think it is possible to learn a lot from this book about Spain, and too about James Michener.

More than twenty years ago, James Michener's historically based novels Chesapeake, The Convenant, and Centennial provided the catalyst for a lifelong obsession with history as recorded in books; an obsession that quickly made ample room for non-fiction. As the spark for this terminal appetite, Michener continues to possess sentimental value though I've long ago completed his impressive list of novels. Iberia, a non-fictional piece of travel writing, had long sat upon my shelf awaiting the day that some stimulus would prompt me towards an in-depth view of Spain. When the moment arrived, I wasn't quite sure what to expect.

Iberia was written in the mid-60's and is, in truth, an amalgamation of Michener's myriad trips to the region beginning in 1936. It is evident throughout that Michener was deeply in love with Spain. It is also evident that the scope of his intellect was profound. There isn't a facet of Spanish life - it's government, history, architecture, customs, cuisine, and geography - of which James Michener wasn't intimately aware. His ability to converse effectively on such a wide range of topics is beyond commendable, even if his opinions, on occasion, may grate.

If there's a downside to Iberia it's Michener's fixation with architecture. I, for one, do not enjoy detailed architectural description without accompanying photography or drawings. One can only absorb so many arches, statues, transepts, apses, bastions, crenelations, cloisters, etc. without an image to look at. Another minor, though memorable, disappointment is Michener's defense of bullfighting. Yes, yes, bullfighting IS Spain, an art form, a tradition, but tormenting an animal to death played better 40 years ago than it does today.

At nearly 800 pages, Iberia is an abundance of finely crafted detail. It is beyond question worth the investment in time, though beyond question a dated look at a fascinating peninsula perched between the Old World and the New.

I rather like the un-Michener form of this personal travelogue. It's a fun break from his usual format. Moreover, you can tell throughout the book that he was profoundly moved by Spain. His observations at times have profound clarity and hs writing in parts soars to pinnacles of great beauty. However a certain arrogance and petulance also shine through. The most trying times are when he is expressing the very partisan views of the French historian Louis Bertrand. These tend towards the extreme pro-conquistador and anti-moorish who dismisses mesoamerican civilization out of hand and explains the origin of Spanish personality quirks (at least in stereotypes) as having come from the moors. I prefer a little more balance, and a bit more support if one does make sweeping statements. But I still found it to be an enjoyable glimpse into Franco-era Spain.

I just finished reading Michener's Iberia, and it's unlike any other book I've ever read -- unlike Michener's novels in that it doesn't follow a real plot, only a very tenuous outline of his travels in Spain; and unlike any other book I've ever read, really, in how he portrays the land he so obviously loves.

Michener sets out with a tale of his first sight of Spain and his first voyages through the impoverished rural lands in the 1930s. He then proceeds to examine Spain, bit by bit, starting with Extremadura in the Southwest and finishing up with a grand pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia. Every step of the way, he recounts his experiences in fresh prose, not so much concentrating on major tourist sights, though these are described, but the places, the festivals, and the events of his personal odyssey in Spain that demonstrate something about the land.

Michener describes many important festivals, like Pamplona's famous fería de San Fermin with its running of the bulls. He visits landmarks both well-known, like the Prado, and obscure, like the wildlife preserve at Las Marismas. Most interesting for me, he describes time and again his conversations with the Spanish, and he met a lot of them, from the poorest peasants to one President of Spain and a tertulia, a group of the nation's most distinguished intellectuals. It is in conveying a sense of the Spanish people that this book really shines.

I read this huge travelogue in preparation for a trip that will take me through Spain, and I was consistently impressed by Michener's ability to select anecdotes that demonstrate something important about the land. The further you read, the more convinced you will become that Michener is a brilliant man, able to perceive the things in Spain's art, in its cuisine, and in its music, that make it really spectacular. Only he could have written such a book, and he did it with obvious relish. The result is a brilliant portrait of Spain.

"Iberia" is a travel log which Michener compiled over years of trips to Spain. His love and respect for this "castle of old dreams and new realities" are evident in his poetic and informative language. We are also treated to people who, though nonfictional, are characterized as larger-than-life members of a fantastic story. Not having even been to Spain, and despite the book's age (30+) years, I feel I have been there many times and could take anyone on a tour of the nation. Fabulous.

An excellent narrative about Spain and the Spanish people. I've lived in Spain for 4 years and find the insights spot on. Although written over 30 years ago in the heart of the Franco era, it is still a wonderful primer on the country.