This book, written by a Chicago journalist married to the descendant of Basque immigrants, brought a lot of local colour and knowledge of the area and its history to life. The characters are presented in a sort of rural idyll - with their own quirks, such as the seasick fisherman Miguel, the blustering Justo who has had to bring up his brothers after his mother's death and his father's disintegration, Miren, the magical dancer who wins Miguel's heart, blind Alaia, brought up in the convent, but finding independence, with the help Miren's friendship, the sale of home made soap and by becoming a kind of prostitute with a heart of gold.
Some of the tension comes from knowing that the bombing will happen, and not knowing how it will affect the families involved.
Afterwards we see the characters re-adjusting to life without those who died, and some of them become more involved in the politics of resistance.
I was not so keen on the interwoven threads about the Red Baron planning the bombing raid, and about Picasso and the painting.
But all in all a very engaging book, with an ending that gives room for hope.
From the New Statesman
Peter HainHeart-rending yet enthralling, Guernica (Picador, £7.99) by Dave Boling is the story of the ordinary residents of Guernica whose lives and community were destroyed in 1937 by Nazi bombing, with the full support of Franco's Fascists. Where Picasso's painting so vividly captured the hellfire of the town's destruction, this book fills in the humanity. The characters, the culture and the landscape are all lovingly described, in direct contrast to the cold and clinical destruction of 1,500 inhabitants of a town that was central to the Basque identity.
Other reviews of this book can be found here
and
here
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