That is the side of Spain that is often portrayed in the popular media, but if you'd like to know a little bit more about the country you are traveling to then it might be time to turn to some books set in Spain that delve into Spanish life and tell us something of the country's difficult history.
It has not been such a long time since Spain was divided by a bitter civil war and the subsequent years of fascism. It wasn't until General Francisco Franco died in 1975 after a forty year reign, that the country was able to embark on becoming the democratic country it is today.
You can find out what it was like for Spaniards in those years by reading the following novels.
'Guernica' by Dave Boling
The town of Guernica is in the Basque region of northern Spain. In 1937 hundreds of residents were killed when the town was bombed by German and Italian war planes. This inspired Pablo Picasso to create a painting of the event -- the horror of the images helping to bring attention to the Spanish Civil War. This novel is the story of that painting and the people depicted in it We become immersed in the lives of the Ansogegui family in the lead up to the war, as well as the devastating years of the war itself -- following them as they try to come to terms with the impact the conflict has on themselves and their loved ones. If you'd like to know more about the Basque people and this particular slice of history, then this novel is ideal.
'The Time of the Doves' by Merce Rodoreda
Set in Barcelona before, during and after the Civil War, this novel follows the life of Natalia through her suffering and depression. It may be a tear-jerker, but it is also a tale of hope and survival. And when you go to Barcelona, you can visit La Placa Del Diamant, the original Catalan title of the novel, and a crucial location in the novel.
'A Manuscript of Ashes' by Antonio Munoz Molina
This novel begins during the latter years of Franco's reign, in the late 1960's. Minaya is a university student who has been imprisoned for his role in a demonstration. He flees to the countryside to work on his thesis and becomes absorbed in a story from the past. It's a mystery, a love story, and a portrayal of the complexities and tumult of the Civil War.
'Winter in Madrid' by C.J. Sansom
As the title suggests, the location of this novel is the Spanish capital. Englishman Harry Brett has been sent to Madrid by the British Secret Service to spy on an old friend. It is 1940, and Harry is soon immersed in the political complexities of post-Civil War Spain. There is also of course, a love story or two...
'The Return' by Victoria Hislop
This novel is a curious mix of chick-lit and historical fiction. And while the style of the writing could be considered 'beach read', the subject matter is not. Told in a mix of past and present, the novel gives a frightening portrayal of the war in the city of Granada. It shows how civil war pits neighbors and even brothers against each other, while the chaos that follow destroys the dreams and relationships of those who are left behind. If you are planning on visiting Granada, then this book is a must.
By all means enjoy the fantastic lifestyle and culture that you will experience on a trip to Spain today, but if you want to really understand the people that you meet on your journey, then any of these books will help you to do that. Immersing yourself in the history of a city or country does much to enhance your travels, so why not read these novels and take that first step. And once you have done that, there are plenty of more books set in Spain to explore....
Making a book available to the English reading audience in North America, whether it's Canada or the United States, requires more than simply having it translated into English from a foreign language. The quality of the translation is important but so is keeping in mind what the reader may expect or find confusing and which words may need to be translated while others may be accepted already as foreign words well known to English readers such as "deja vous," "burrito," or "sushi."
Even if you are not translating a book, but simply detectives privados madrid writing a book set in a foreign country that is largely unfamiliar to readers, you need to assume your reader is predominantly not knowledgeable about your topic and then make the topic and setting accessible for him or her. In other words, you must allow the book to retain its foreign charm or atmosphere while making it less "foreign," which may mean explaining customs, religion, or inside politics to readers so they can follow the book, or not dwelling on these items unless they are relevant to understanding the plot and characters. Remember while a non-fiction book has much more leeway because readers want information and detail, a novel is intended foremost as entertainment so you have to make the book accessible in a way that will entertain yet retain the key foreign elements of the text.
Here are a few simple tips to get you started in making your book accessible to the English-speaking North American audience:
Translation Rules:
Spelling Differences:
British and American English have standard spellings that are slightly different. Here are just three of the most common:
Word Connotation Differences:
Some words in American English have different meanings than in British English. For example:
Watch Out for Confusing Names
An American reader will soon find his head swimming even if you are using common American names that have similar spellings. For example, the American reader might have a hard time keeping Mark, Matt, Mike, and Mitch separate in his head, or for that matter, Peggy, Polly, Pam, and Patty could cause equal confusion. So if you are writing for an American audience and using foreign names, you especially need to be careful. If your novel is Arabic and your characters are Mohammed, Mustafa, and Mufid, you might easily confuse your reader as to who is who. Even more confusing would be hyphenated names that have the same beginning such as Abdul-Aziz, Abdul-Bari, and Abdul-Fattah. In this case, you might choose to drop the "Abdul" from the names and settle for Aziz, Bari, and Fattah, which are all fairly different in appearance.
Don't be Tolstoy. Anyone who has ever tried to read one of Tolstoy's novels such as "Anna Karenina" or "War and Peace" can find himself easily confused. Not only do Tolstoy's Russian characters have first and last names, but they also have middle names and nicknames, and Tolstoy has certain characters use different names depending on who is speaking to the character. Alexis' mother might call him Alexis while his friend calls him Nicholas, his middle name, and his professors call him Ilyanovich for his last name. The poor reader not only has to keep track of fifty characters, but three or so names per character to make up 150 names. One of the best solutions to this problem was a translation of "Anna Karenina" (see below) that settled on just one name for each character, changing all the individual characters' many names to one name per character for the reader to remember.
Focus on Broad Brush Strokes over Details
If you are writing fiction about another culture, you want to provide the feeling of that culture to the reader without giving an exhaustive history, geography, or cultural lesson. While the reader of non-fiction will probably be more tolerant of details, readers of novels want to be entertained, not expected to work to learn something.
The novelist should never assume the reader knows anything about what is, to him or her, a foreign culture being presented in the book. Nor should the novelist expect that the reader is going to run to the dictionary, encyclopedia, or Internet to look up unfamiliar terms. Readers who find they have to consult other sources, even if they are footnotes provided in the book, are quickly going to find that reading the book is too much work, and they are going to go elsewhere for information.
A novel set in a foreign country should provide just enough cultural glamour to wet the reader's interest-perhaps to make the reader understand the magic or the significance of the other culture. If the novelist has done a good job, he will first and foremost have told a story that is entertaining. If that is all he does, he will have succeeded. If the reader is intrigued enough to want to learn more about the culture or country beyond that, he can then do further reading in history books or encyclopedias or even visit the country that is the setting for the novel.
Finally, remember that several novels set in foreign countries have been successful among American reading audiences. Equally, several novels translated into English have been successful. To prepare your book for the American reading audience, you may do well to read some of these books and see how the culture is presented while being accessible to the reader and then follow that author or translator's example.
Some Well-Known Accessible Foreign or Foreign-Setting Novels:
You might also consider foreign novels you've found impossible to read. Make sure you don't make the same mistakes as those novelists did. And if you're American and having your book translated into a foreign language, equally ask yourself what about your book might confuse your readers-you may then want to remove or