Book description
Love, war, duty, faith, betrayal and belief - a revolutionary new view
of the Spanish Civil War through the eyes and experiences of the women
who endured it, by the greatest historian of Spain: 'Passionate and
deeply moving… when Preston writes about these women, you feel as if you
are in their company.' Scotland on Sunday
'Four extraordinary women whose personal histories should dispel any
illusions that the Spanish Civil War was an all-male war…Written with a
shrewd eye and a sure touch, the book is full of wonderful stories and
acute observations. Above all, these are compellingly human dramas in
which moral issues, right and wrong, Fascism and Communism, melt away.'
Sunday Telegraph
The Aristocrat: PIP SCOTT-ELLIS fell in love with a Spanish prince and
set off for Madrid in a chauffeur-driven limousine. She ended up nursing
in front-line Francoist hospitals.
The Communist: NAN GREEN, by contrast, travelled to war third class.
Leaving her children behind in England, she went to fight for the
International Brigade.
The Intellectual: MARGARITA NELKEN was an art critic and novelist, who
had translated Kafka into Spanish. Denounced as a whore by the Catholic
Right, she became a radical politician.
The Fascist: After her husband was killed in the fighting and
miscarrying her baby on hearing the news, MERCEDES SANZ-BACHILLER set up
a welfare organisation that was to change the face of Spain.
'Preston has harnessed biography to serve history by vividly telling
the stories of four very different women whose lives were starkly
altered by the conflict… significant, tragic and remarkable' Irish Times
'A magnificent achievement. Preston combines the skills of the
professional historian with a profound understanding of women. Eminently
readable, this is narrative history at its best.' Literary Review
'Newcomers to the Spanish conflict could hardly find a better place to
start.' Sunday Times Paul Preston is Principe de Asturias Professor of
Iberian History at the LSE, and was head of the International History
Department there for several years. He is regarded as the leading
historian of twentieth-century Spain now working, especially in Spain
itself where he is multiply honoured and holds a state monopoly on the
interpretation of that country's modern history.
