Customer Reviews

The New Spaniards (Penguin Politics and Current Affairs)

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This must be a definitive review of Spanish society and culture in the last half century, and while it's certainly fascinating reading, it is oversaturated. It can be a bit difficult to get through learning EVERYTHING about Spain if you are a newcomer to the topic. The section on the press becomes passionately detailed. Hooper seems to give the names, political bents and histories (behind the scenes and otherwise,) of every newspaper and magazine printed since 1936, as well as statistics about readership levels among various classes and regions over time which he compares to those of Britain and other European countries. Granted the information, with his analysis, does make for a very vivid portrait of the country, but you may feel a bit as though you're being hit on the head with a hammer when he starts doing the same thing in a chapter on television broadcasting. I simply couldn't keep track of the TV stations, and what they were up to, who was running them, how and why. Though I did get the point. Spanish love television, and they don't seem to have a problem with government control of the medium.

On the other hand the chapters on education, the arts, film, and the significantly independent regions of Spain, to wit, the Basque, the Catalan and the Galician regions, were much more breathable, and did fill in many gaps in my understanding,(though there were far too many personalities to keep track of, and all involved in very intricate negotiations,) as did earlier chapters about the general History of the country, and how the conflicts, between the various nations which came to form Spain, still exist today. In the minds of most Spaniards, the formation of Spain as a nation was never a forgone conclusion. And Hooper covers this national psychological fragmentation, and its present day outpourings and consequences, with startling detail.

As a spaniard I find incredible merit in this book. It is accurate like no other study (spanish or otherwise) and very entertaining. It has made me understand my country like never before through its very well documented and almost totally impartial overview of the Spain of recent years. Sometimes it takes a certain distance to see the whole picture and not corrupt the reality with stereotypes, myths repeated like mantras or official versions of the facts. For any Spain lover this is -the- book.

I would categorize this book less as politics and current affairs and more as a complete sociological analysis of contemporary Spanish society. The author covers all aspects of modern Spain including its politics, economy, demographics, education, housing, labor, family, religion, and popular culture. The author explains the changes over the past 25 years from the ossified Franco regime to the modern nation involved politically,economically, and socially with the rest of Europe and the world. Very well written and organized with insightful analysis and illuminating explanation of Spanish society and mores.

After having visited the land of paella 19 times, I find that Hooper is dependably dead-on perfect in most all his observations and assessments of post Franco Spain. He masterfully explains how the country reached its present point, fitting a surprising amount of historic/cultural background into 470 pages. Hooper offers methodical analysis of every imaginable mileau (art, education, politics, crime, sex, religion, the press,etc etc), plus evocative (and unerring) portraits of each of Spain's strikingly different states. Indispensible for those traveling there, and a fascinating read for anyone even mildly interested in the region.

No praise is too high for this book, which is exceptionally entertaining as well as informative. Its most attractive quality is the way that it gets behind the newspaper headlines and gives a real sense of what life is like in the hugely different regions of Spain. Particularly interesting on the modern Spanish Catholic church and on youth culture.

The first form of this book was simply called "The Spaniards" and was published in 1986. A completely revised version came out in 1995 with the title changed to "The New Spaniards." This second (2006) edition is significantly different that the first new and completely revised edition. This must sound convoluted, but the evolution of this book reflects the incredible changes that have taken place in Spain since the death of Dictator Franco in 1975. Indeed, some have argued that no other country has changed as much or as rapidly as Spain during the past 30 years.

British journalist John Hooper is intimately familiar with Spain. The well-researched, well-written book is as fine a survey of Spanish history, life, culture and attitudes as you are likely to find. His treatment is impartial and fair, though his love and respect for Spain cannot be obscured. It is everything you wanted to know and probably much you did not want to know. By that I mean that the strength of the book is also its weakness for some people. Though I am somewhat familiar with Spain, I learned a great deal and was fascinated with the breath, depth and accuracy of information Hooper provides. I also found myself slugging it out though seemingly endless statistics, economic studies and obscure names acronyms and personalities. Despite that, Hooper strikes a fine balance between academic excellence and readability. Even though you may be overwhelmed by more information than you can absorb, Hooper usually keeps your interest and gets the main point across.

If you are planning a vacation in Spain "The New Spaniards" may be more information than you care to know. Even a causal tourist, though, can benefit greatly from this book by intentionally focusing on what is interesting and relevant and not carrying the self-imposed burden of trying to remember or understand every detail. Of particular value is Hooper's firm grasp of the different peoples, languages and regions of Spain. If you are going to Spain as an exchange student or otherwise planning to spend an extended period of time in Spain, this is the place to begin your education.

Having made our reservations to travel to Spain, my wife and I set out to do some background study. Of several currently popular sources, I found "The New Spaniards" to be the most helpful overview of both history and of culture. Many Americans are generally familiar with the outlines of Spain's glorious past. We were seeking to know more of its present, beginning with the Franco era and including snapshots of its current culture. This book is well-suited to those of us who are interested in Spain's regions and the region-Madrid(national) tensions, the role of the press and modern social science poll results. These latter statistics are conversationally presented and by no means overwhelm the reader: rather, they give good understanding and form the basis for conversations with Spanish friends one might make along the way.

I enjoyed my 10 day trip to Spain so much more because of having read this book before I went. Spain came out of a dictatorship in 1977; the time spent under it and the process of coming out of it is a fascinating story. This book gives entertaining and thoughtful insight into the Spainish peopele and their culture from many angles. It should also be listed along with the travel selection of books.

It makes sense now. Spain's rapid transformation from diplomatically isolated, economically stagnant backwater of Europe into a modern model european society is broken down and explained in an interesting fashion and with much attention to detail and statistics here by Hooper. Unputdownable.

I have traveled to Spain twice in recent years and am very curious about the country and its people. I have found this book to be a valuable resource to my understanding of Spanish history, its people and culture. The amount of information in this 400+ page book would be overwhelming if it weren't so well organized. Hooper gives us useful chapter divisions and chapters that are just the right length. This is particularly helpful if you are looking for information on a specific aspect of life in Spain. I have purchased a few other books on Spain and this one is the most useful and enjoyable, by far. My one quible would be the relative scarcity of visual graphics, photos and illustrations. Otherwise it is an excellent read.