Written with deep knowledge and affection, Homage to Barcelona is a sensuous and beguiling portrait of a great Mediterranean city.
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"'Colm Toibin writes prose of a heartbreaking beauty' Hilary Mantel, Daily Telegraph"
Book Description
This book celebrates one of Europe’s greatest cities – a cosmopolitan hub of vibrant architecture, art, culture and nightlife. It moves from the story of the city’s founding and its huge expansion in the nineteenth century to the lives of Gaudí, Miró, Picasso, Casals and Dalí. It also explores the history of Catalan nationalism, the tragedy of the Civil War, the Franco years and the transition from dictatorship to democracy which Colm Tóibín witnessed in the 1970s. Written with deep knowledge and affection, Homage to Barcelona is a sensuous and beguiling portrait of a unique Mediterranean port and an adopted home. ‘Tóibín has the narrative poise of Brian Moore and the patient eye for domestic detail of John McGahern, but he is very much his own man’ Observer ‘Having lived in Barcelona off and on since the 70s, Toibin knows all the fascinations of its sensuous Mediterranean history and lifestyle and “the most precious jewels in the city’s treasury of bars” . . . Tóibín is the perfect guide’ Chicago Tribune
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
46 of 48 people found the following review helpful
By Cathy
Format:Paperback
I read this book in 1994 while working on a rural development project in El Salvador. I had never been to Barcelona and that post-war time in El Salvador was hard. There was violence and the threat of violence. There was brutality and silence and ignorance and poverty and hardship and want and illiteracy.
Starved of English-language reading material, or indeed, any reading material at all, I fell upon Homage to Barcelona by Toibin. I didn't start it with any great anticipation but by the end of it I almost had to tie myself down to prevent me running to the airport and boarding the next plane for Barcelona.
I read the bit about the bar where the old man and his sons and grandsons served up hams and sherries and wines, where there were wooden barrels and I cried for that city I had never visited.
When I did get to go to Barcelona I made sure I had the book with me and enjoyed re-reading it in all the places it mentions. I felt I knew the city with the knowledge contained within the book at my disposal.
This is a really great book and fitting homage to a really great city.
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful
By Marc Samida
Format:Paperback
I enjoyed this book, and even though I live in Barcelona I learned a lot more about the city than I knew before reading the book. Toibín writes well but his book, at least the Picador edition that I read, is very poorly researched, and the proofreading is quite disastrous. I noted literally dozens of inconsistencies, misspellings and outright errors and impossibilities (Miró was born in Tarragona province, page 98, and was also born in 1893 in Passeig del Crèdit, in the centre of Barcelona, according to page 80). I hope that subsequent editions eliminated these errors (which I pointed out to the publisher, without acknowledgement) because the book has plenty of merit, and I suppose that most of the people reading the book will be unaware of most the inconsistencies and wrong spelling.
46 of 50 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
In advance of a recent trip to Barcelona, was scouring bookshops for suitable volumes to take, and loathe to take Robert Hughes' heavier tome (in both weight and subject matter) was pleased to find this lovely short volume. Colm Toibin has many years' experience from living on-and-off in the city and his love for it (and exasperation at times) shines through. Presents the city in its context as the capital of a region yearning for autonomy, and dissects its relationship with Spain as a whole, with good, brief chapters on politics and history. The greater part explores the artistic personalities which I am particularly interested in, namely Picasso, Miro and the ubiquitous Gaudi. The above description sounds dry, in fact the prose is unpretentious and easy to read. Highly recommended.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you want to understand the feel of Barcelona...
This is the first of Colm Toibin's books that I have read and I'm looking forward to getting my hands on more of his work! Read more
Published 12 months ago by sulla
5.0 out of 5 stars
Homage to Barcelona by Toibin
This book is a classic, beautifully written. It's not a "guidebook", of course, but is rich in describing the history of Barcelona and Catalyuna, with sections on major figures... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Henning
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good... but not very good...
After spending a couple of days in Barcelona, I encountered this book for sale in the English language section of a bookshop. Read more
Published on 7 Mar 2011 by G. D. Busby
3.0 out of 5 stars
New proof readers needed
An interesting account of a certain period in Barcelona's history by someone who obviously loves the city. Read more
Published on 8 Feb 2011 by Barcelonadweller
4.0 out of 5 stars
One of those classic texts to read before visiting a city
Like 'Venice' by Jan Morris (another classic 'city' text') this book was written some time ago, hence don't use it for bar and restaurant recommendations! Read more
Published on 3 Feb 2011 by Johnny
4.0 out of 5 stars
Perfect primer for Barcelona and Catalonia
A slim volume that is an excellent introduction to Catalonia, its cities, history, artists and culture. Read more
Published on 28 Oct 2007 by read.heard.seen.
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