No comments about Michelin Map No. 573 Northern Spain (Pais Vasco/Euskadi,Navarra, La Rioja.

No comments about Moleskine City Notebook Madrid (Moleskine City Pocket Notebook).

5 comments about With Love from Spain, Melanie Martin (Melanie Martin Novels).

1. The Martin family band together for a two-week Spring break vacation as seen through the eyes of 11-year-old Melanie. Readers join Melanie through the pain and confusion of first love as she fills her senses with the compelling Spanish landscape. This is an amusing linguistic travel adventure written in diary format. Because the author phonetically spells the Spanish words Melanie learns, I found myself saying some of the words aloud and learning quite a few things along the way. An appendix of all the foreign words Ms. Weston used would have been an added benefit to the book. With Love From Spain, Melanie Martin will make you want to take your kids on a European adventure of your own, no matter where you live in the world! The potential for this book is it's "that's me" value for Tweeners making the transition beyond being big kids.



2. I bought this book from amazon.com and read it the day it came. It's so sweet to see Melanie in love! Stocked with bullfights, fireworks and of course, ROMANCE, this book rocks! It's almost like being in Europe yourself! This book is a must-read!



3. I LOVED this book. it was great. all of the Melanie Martin books are great. In this one she goes with her parents to Spain. her dad has business in Spain to do so her mom used frequent flyer miles to have the whole family go with him. In Spain Melanie's mom meets up with her old boyfriend Antonio. When there. melanie falls for Antonio's son Miguel. In this book many adventures come in with love between Melanie and Miguel. Also surprisling Matt the Brat helps out to keep Melanie and Miguel alone or gives Melanie tips, like when Miguel's cousin comes and Melanie thought it was Miguel's girlfriend. This book was great and I'd recommend it for all ahges.



4. Finally! My 3rd-grade daughter used to dread reading, and the first book "Matt the Brat" got her hooked! This is the first time she has wished that there were more books in a series. Carol Weston, please write more!!



5. Loved it, loved it, loved it. I am not a teenager anymore but I still loved it. I could relate. I read it in one evening and wished that there was book 2 to read. Please keep writing these great, funny books.

1 comments about Knopf MapGuide: Vienna (Knopf Mapguides).

1. This series of city gudes are wonderful for any traveler. They are handy and small enough to fit in a pocket. They provide useful information at a glance.

5 comments about Death and the Sun: A Matador's Season in the Heart of Spain.

1. I thought Edward Levine's book about bullfighting in contemporaty Spain was terrific. I enjoy the genre of book where a writer/reporter stays with a subject for a season and this book is among the best. Have always thought this subject was extremely interesting and Levine does it justice.
   
   Brought back memories of spending a month in Spain in 1977 during which I read Michener's Iberia and Death in the Afternoon. The principal character of Levine's book is Francisco Ordonez and by chance I saw his grandfather Antonio Ordonez fight in a Novillos in Seville on 11/27.
   
   I think Mr. Levine is a keen observor of human behavior and events surrounding him. I also found his style to be very descriptive and it flowed nicely.



2. 
   This was a truly absorbing book. A debt goes to Francisco Rivera Ordonez, as well, for allowing a writer to join his entourage.
   
   Lewine gives us an appreciation for this art by taking us into the life not just any matador, but one who wears the mantle of his fathers.
   
   We learn about how the crowds vary from city to city, how the bulls are bred and selected, the attitude of the "bull press", the history of the game. We learn how to appreciate the matador's movements and about the nature and of his entourage. We learn about costumes, the genteel way to buy scalped tickets and how to run with the bulls in Pomploma and much more.
   
   Pictures would have been great, but the writing is so good they're not missed until the book is over. I went to Francisco's web site where there are lots of photos, small and unlabeled, but many you can figure out.
   
   Through the writer's respect for the matador, and Fran in particular, the reader learns respect as well.
   
   OLE!



3. 
   To enjoy this book you have to have at least a passing interest in bullfighting.
   
   If this is the case then you should really enjoy this book.
   
   It is very well written, the prose is tight and easily leads the narrative quickly along.
   
   The author is not a wild eyed fan of bullfighting (or if he is he hides it well). He approaches is subject in a detached and objective way but at the same time understands the intangible forces and emotions that drive the national fiesta. He does not denigrate or defend bullfighting but rightly observes that much like personal religious beliefs it is something that is either formed into a person as something of value without the benefit of logic or it is not.
   
   The book has a well balanced symmetry, flowing the story of Francisco Ordonez, the world he moves in, his bullfighting predecessors, the history of bullfighting, the detail of one particular season and a lot of interesting bits and pieces that a person like myself, who has been interested in bullfighting for twenty years, have always wondered about but never knew, things like- just how much do these guys make and what are the functional economics and organizational mechanics of bullfighting. You learn about this and much more. You get to know the structure of Francisco Ordonez's world, the caudrilla, the aficionados, the press, the hotels, the travel, the manager.
   
   After Death in the Afternoon, this was the most enjoyable book on bullfighting I've read.
   
   I highly recommend it.



4. Excellent! This book is (at least) three stories in one: a review of a season following the bullfighter Francisco Rivera Ordóñez, an introduction to bullfighting and a Spanish travel book.
   
   As to bullfighting, there is limited bullfighting coverage in the English language, and I found this book to be a good introduction to bullfighting. For a first time reader of the subject, I recommend this book over "Death in the Afternoon", the classic English language treatise by Ernest Hemingway. "Death in the Afternoon" is in part outdated as bullfighting has changed since it was written, and Lewine's work is simply easier for today's reader to read. If you fall in love with the subject, then also read "Death in the Afternoon".
   
   As to a travel book of Spain, Lewine's description of the cities and places he visits and the related history is also enjoyable. If you are interested in the subject of bullfighting, this book is an excellent choice.



5. I am just learning about Spain and the culture and history of the bullfight. This book provides a great method of giving the reader a wealth of information while taking one through a year in the life of a matador. For anyone interested in accurate information that also tells a story, this book is highly recommended.

No comments about Barcelona: Shops & More.

1 comments about Spain: A Traveler's Literary Companion.

1. We got this as a gift the night before we left for Spain and it made the whole trip better. My wife read most of the stories on the plane on the way over and then I read them at the hotel. It truly made the trip so much more meaningful. And it helped us to figure out where we wanted to go and illuminated so much about the culture of the people of Spain. I have a much better sense of the culture and people of this wonderful country. It made the experience of our trip richer and deeper. If you're going to Spain, don't go without this book.

No comments about Lonely Planet Madrid (Lonely Planet. (Spanish Guides)).

No comments about Going Native in Catalonia.

3 comments about The Rough Guide to Northern Spain Country Map (Rough Guide Country/Region Map).

1. Good map. Nice and detailed. Unfortunately the area I am most interested in is just south of the southern cut off. Don't buy this map if you are planning to visit Castille y Leon or Catalonia.



2. I had the Michelin maps of Spain/Portugal and the big Michelin map of Galicia and the next area..........but the Rough Guide map was my #1 choice by far for our 10 days in Galicia and the one I used as family navigator. The map has a plastic coating, so it won't break as with paper maps when you try to fold it over into the section that you need.
   
   The symbol for scenic overlooks or miradors was great........I managed to get our family to a bunch of obscure but beautiful sites, some of them on those narrow "white roads."
   
   I found the printing and colors much easier to follow than the Michelin maps.
   
   One caution about all the maps other than the one that we got from the Galician tourist bureau........the road numbers on the maps do not always match the road numbers on the roads!



3. The map is easy to ready with great information, but it has already tore at one of the crease lines...