Iberia

By: James A. Michener

Narrated by: Larry McKeever

Length: 37 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

“Massive, beautiful . . . unquestionably some of the best writing on Spain [and] the best that Mr. Michener has ever done on any subject.”—The Wall Street Journal

Spain is an immemorial land like no other, one that James A. Michener, the Pulitzer Prize–winning author and celebrated citizen of the world, came to love as his own. Iberia is Michener’s enduring nonfiction tribute to his cherished second home. In the fresh and vivid prose that is his trademark, he not only reveals the celebrated history of bullfighters and warrior kings, painters and processions, cathedrals and olive orchards, he also shares the intimate, often hidden country he came to know, where the congeniality of living souls is thrust against the dark weight of history. Wild, contradictory, passionately beautiful, this is Spain as experienced by a master writer.

©2015 James A. Michener (P)2015 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“From the glories of the Prado to the loneliest stone villages, here is Spain, castle of old dreams and new realities.”—The New York Times

“A dazzling panorama . . . one of the richest and most satisfying books about Spain in living memory.”—Saturday Review

“Kaleidoscopic . . . This book will make you fall in love with Spain.”—The Houston Post

Michener's Masterpiece

Michener's masterpiece takes the reader through an epic journey through Iberian history and experience. Iberia is a must read for any history enthusiast.

Informative and Enjoyable

I listened to this in prep for vacation to Spain, Andalucia and Madrid. It was worth the time, and I gained a better understanding of many parts of Spain I didn’t know anything about. Loved the section about the Prado! And I enjoyed that it was his own personal story!

Monolithic

The book wasn't terrible, it was just dated overall. Some parts were great reflections on Spanish cities and countryside, other parts reported on Spanish life in the 50s and 60s. Those parts don't really stand the test of time. It would be an appropriate book for any student of Spain, European history, or Michener fan.

Epic tour de force of Spain

Mitchners book explores in detail Spains history, art, culture, geography with in depth analysis of bulls, bull fighters, the Spanish Inquisition in comparison with other European nations of the time, horses, horsemen and women, birds, refuges, ancient art, ruins. He fails at paella.

So so.

This is a travel journal from the mid-1960’s. Had a hard time relating to it as I wondered how different Spain must be today. Love Michener though and plan to give another go.

Fabulous preparation for my trip to Spain!

Recommend it highly!! Very detailed and interesting. A newcomer would never know Spain like this.

Painful listen

There's no story! it's a personal travel journal that drones on and on. I can't believe I stuck with it to the finish.
I've listened to several of his books and this is the first one of his I regret.

Great Introduction to what life was like in IBERIA

What did you love best about Iberia?

I really enjoyed this book as i was traveling through Spain. It gave some historical narrative that i found fascinating, along with extreme differences from what Michener view as Iberia to what it has become today.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Iberia?

This book had a lot of memorable moments in it, but I would say his stories of historical perspective gave me the most inspiration to keep digging and researching more as I was traveling around Spain.

What about Larry McKeever’s performance did you like?

At first I wondered if I could make it thought this book because of his dry way of reading, however now he has become the voice that I associate with Michener, and after a while I started to enjoy hearing his voice as it read the book. Now I am looking for other books by Michener that Larry McKeever reads.

Any additional comments?

Great read for anyone interested in Spain its culture and an over all perspective on the country and the area known as Ibiera

Good!

It is Michener, what can you say. I enjoyed it,. but was a little disappointed that he covered so much of the history but overlooked some. He covered the Bull Fights and the history of the Bulls bred to fight.... But he totally overlooked the Amazing Andalusian Horses that were bred to fight the Bulls! That Ancient breed of horse was the contribution to most of the Baroque Horses around the World. The book was very good, and I think, a great read before a trip to Spain. The Narration was excellent and very easy to listen to. Thanks!

Brilliant Book

Brilliant book and insight into the country of Spain. HOWEVER, (and this is a huge flaw in the Audible presentation), if you are going to narrate a book which has words in it from a foreign language, do your research, and learn how to pronounce those words pproperly. Some of the mispronunciation is fine, he's using his "Italian accent," which is understandable if he speaks Italian, but some of the words are so blatantly mispronounced that it is cringeworthy and makes it difficult to listen to, especially if the word is said multiple times. For example, there is an entire section about the "Guardia Civil" and Mr. McKeever mispronounced the word "guardia" (pronounced "gwardia" in Spanish, as if you would pronounce it in English, "guard"-ia. This and quite a few other blatant mispronunciations like it are a huge oversight and should have, in my opinion, been cause for a do-over. I'm not blaming Mr. McKeever. How would he know? But I do blame audible for allowing this production to go forward without correction. It’s nearly unbearable in parts. Only my love for Spain and curiosity and hunger for more knowledge kept me listening, as I do not have the time to sit down and read a volume of this size.