Customer Reviews

Or I'll Dress You in Mourning : The Story of El Cordobes and the New Spain He Stands For

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Perhaps one of the best biographies I have ever read, this book tells the story of the fabled Spanish bullfighter Manuel Benitez "El Cordobes"!

Born in strict poverty, this youngser defied all the odds in becoming perhaps the most famous modern day "toreador"! His phenominal rise to fame is truly something out of a novel! El Cordobes, desperate, illiterate, starving had one dream, to become a bullfighter. And the odds were stacked heavily against him. This noble profession certainly had no room for such a peasant! But the heavens were looking out for him and rise he did. With the help of an influential patron, El Cordobes succeeded, and with a fervor almost unparalleled. This is no "dull biography" but a gripping one, complete with all the ingredients of a first-rate novel! (Billyjhobbs@tyler.net)

I have owned this book (in paperback form) for 30 years. Never have I read a book so entertaining that I could sit there and not put it down. Because of this book I developed an interest in matadors and tauromachy that is with me to this day. My only question is....Why isn't this book a movie? It has all the elements for a major motion picture. It just needs the right director and script. With all the attention focused on people who speak Spanish...now is the time to "strike while the iron is hot"..so to speak. This book is well-written and well-researched. I always felt I was right there beside El Cordobes ...the authors made him come to life on every page. Someday I want to go to Spain to visit all the cities, towns and villages named in this book. Anyone interested in the life of a courageous young boy who overcame insurmountable odds....has to read this book. It's fabulous! My personal favorite for 30 years!

Dealing with the improbable accention and life of the unorthodox Matador El Cordobes, this book also deals throughly with the Spanish Civil War of the thirties and should be of great interest to anyone who loves Spain and the writings of Hemmingway (Death in the Afternoon, For Whom the Bell Tolls, The Sun Also Rises) Maugham or Greene. The Matador grew up in poverty and became the Michael Jordan of the bullring to the dismay of all the afficionados of the pure form of the sport. In other words he interjected histrionics such as doing such things like flips as Jordan may dunk the ball while extending his tung. The story in this book will grip the novice from beginning till end and totally infuriate the purist. One evening twenty years ago I spent an entire night with the late, great western art historian, critic and author; Dean Krakel. He took me to his basement to view his impressive liberary of three thousand books and to show me the rifle John Wayne gave him from the set of "Stagecoach". He walked over to a shelf and chose this book and said, "Now if you can ever write a book this good, You've really done something."

I've read this book twice now. Never fails to enthrall me. It is great on 3 levels. One, a spellbinding plot that can keep you up all night. Two, it teaches some Spanish history and bullfighting lore. Three, it makes you grateful for what you have and shows that with perseverance your dreams can come true. A good book for a teenager. One of the best I've read in a long time.

This book demonstrates how all men are not equal. I was enthralled, horrified and moved by the story of El Cordobes, the famous bullfighter and his rise to the top of his profession. His strength and courage in the bullring, his quest for literacy and latterly for the right to medical aid regardless of ability to pay kept me rivited until the end. The style of writing is fluid, and the tight focus on the chronology make the story fascinating. Even if bullfighting is not your average sports scene, this is a must read - the excitment, custom and fragrance of the corrida emanate from every page.

This is my favourite book of all times. I have read it at least seven or eight times and every time, it never fails to excite me. The story is well told and animated and as well as understanding the life of El Cordobes, you also learn so much about the history of Spain, the era of Franco and the impact his tyranny had on the country. If you read this book, I guarantee you will not be disappointed.

This is another masterpiece by Collins and Lapierre on multiple levels. On one level is the fascinating rags to riches biography of the Spanish bullfighter El Cordobes and its raw insight on the bullfighting business. On another level is the tragic backdrop of the Spanish Civil War in all its horror. And ultimately it is a moving and compeling insight on the magic and wonder that is Spain and the Spanish. You can't put this one down. It will stay with you long after the last page.

Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins have written a great book. "Or I'll Dress You In Mourning" is a powerful account of the life and times of "El Cordobes", which I had the good fortune of watching him fight a bull in the 60's in a black and white footage. His lack of fear and proximity to the bull while making his "passes" can only be described as exceptional courage! Regardless wether a person likes or does not like bullfighting as a sport or as an art, the fact remains that these particular kind of bulls are a breed that can quite easily kill a person with just one gore of their deadly horns. These are no friendly, peaceful animals. Some of them are amazing sights. Just to imagine one charging at you knowing their split second reactions allows them to turn on a dime, sort of speak, makes a person appreciate the drama involved in a "corrida". The story of "El Cordobes" and the period of time in which it took place in Spain makes for great reading. This "Matador's" poverty and desire to become the best is nothing short of exceptional. Dominique Lapierre is a great writer. Another great book by him is "City of Joy". A book of such spiritual force that leaves the reader helpless with awareness. I like the fact that this kind of writing is non fictional. Larry Colling has collaborated with Lapierre and must take equal amounts of credit for this book. 5 stars for this great book, a proud inclusion in anyone's library.

PS 10-6-09, I was caught off guard when Amazon asked me to write a review on this book and then when I was done and try to publish it informed me that I already had written one and therefore I was unable to post one more. Since I did write it, I copied it and now, at the risk of overextending my welcome I am including it below:

From very poor origins to financial success this Torero (bullfighter) was the real deal and the book does his story, from infancy and the terrible poverty in which he existed, to the later years when he became a national icon. Bullfighters are a rare breed of people and through the times many great ones have lost their lives on the very ring where they practiced their craft. The fighting bull is no easy adversary, having all the requirements to inflict great pain including fatal gores, and the whole feast is imbedded in the national fabric of the spanish people, specially Spain but without disregarding the great "Matadores" that have come from South America, Mexico, etc., to name a few. This is an art that requires a great degree of preparation if one is to succeed at it. The book does justice to this incredible story of Manuel Benitez "El Cordobes". He was a fearless, hungry for recognition bullfighter. On one of his most momentous period he told his sister, who always seemed to want to help him but helpless herself because of poverty, he said to her as he headed for one of his most important trial "Tonight I will buy you a house or I'll dress you mourning", and bought her a house he did for in his ultimate test he succeeded beyond his wildest dreams. From being a smelly, borderline delinquent with absolute no promising future ahead of him, he turned the tide of his life and became one of the most revered and adored citizens of the great country of Spain. I could not believe my luck when one day in a remote library I found a used copy of this book for a meager .25 cents, just laying there ignored by most covering a subject that I have always found fascinating. I have seen the biggest, baddest bulls but this particular bull, the fighting bull, is a sight to behold! Wouldn't think of getting caught anywhere near those deadly horns, seen them turn on a dime and charge with such fury

for that is what they are all about. Bred with only one purpose: To meet a Bullfighter on a hot afternoon in a fight to the death. Sounds easy, some say it sounds abusive (towards the animal) yet those that have witnessed and lived around these type of people can not help but to be awed for this is no easy life, quite the contrary. Or I'll Dress You in Mourning is such an account of a special kind of human being, written by Dominique Lapierre who also wrote "City of Joy" where the sorely missed Patrick Swayze played a role and with all possible limitations it is still a book of special grace. 5 Stars for sure and like a famous torero once said as he was offering the bull to a beautiful lady: "Va por Bernardito, Nino del Biberon!" Ole!

I read this book 40 years ago while I was stationed in the US air force in Spain. I recently ordered it to read again and it still is such a wonderful powerful book of Spain. El Cordobes was the Joe Namath of bull fighting with a flamboyant style that just outraged the old traditionalists of this sport. This books' about much more than his exploits in the ring. It's about the Spanish civil war a horrible tragedy in the 1930's in that beleaguered country. Also the aftermath of the war and the depression that followed. His first love and those dangerous nights under the moonlight learning to fight the bulls as his only apprenticeship into the ring. I was there in Spain during some of his era and he was a true superstar who could stop the entire country gathered around TV sets when he hit the ring. You'll have to get this book and read for yourself. You'll never forget it ever.

I bought this copy of the book after having lost my original. I felt that I needed to read this book again, after meeting El Cordobes in Benidorm many years ago when Benidorn was still a small towm.

Well worth reading a second time.