Recommend Books on This Thread

Bronze Age Pervert Saturday 7 Nov 2015

Cornelio said: ↑

Antonio Pérez

Gregorio Marañón, 1947

Probably Marañón's magnum opus, along with his study of Olivares . When the spanish civil war broke in 1936, Marañón exiled himself in Paris. There, surrounded by other expatriates, he began a series of essays on relevant spaniards who, throughout history, had to go into exile; among others he wrote about Luis Vives, Garcilaso de la Vega, or Antonio Pérez. While researching the latter, he became fascinated by his life and deeds, and decided to dedicate a full volume to his life.

Born in 1540, Antonio Pérez was the son of Gonzalo Pérez, secretary to the emperor Charles V. In time Antonio became secretary to Charles' son, Philip II. As such he exercised great authority over the spanish political destinies for a decade. His power though wasn't as complete as that of Olivares 60 years later; Philip II was a thorough administrator, and he had the final say in every affair -- but for a time he became heavily influenced by his secretary.

Antonio Pérez, a promiscuous bisexual pervert and descended from cristianos nuevos (converted jews) was an unlikely choice for secretary for Philip II, a pious king who directed all his actions on earth to the preservation of the threatened supremacy of Roman Catholicism in Europe. Perez's efficiency as administrator captivated the king, who felt the machine of the state would come to a halt without him.

In the end Pérez overreached:

Fallen from grace after murdering one his political enemies without the permission of the king, he escaped to Aragón (his family came from there). There he took refuge in the Fueros (the ancient privileges of this kingdom) and the favor of the local authorities to evade the king's justice, all while sending veiled threats to publish all his papers and thus compromise the king in the public (international) eye. The king, unable to force the Aragonian aristocrats to send Pérez back to Castilla, made the Inquisition intervene: the religious tribunal had limitless authority in every spanish territory. For that to work they had to make up a story about Perez being an heretic, which was not truly believable: Perez was a horrible sinner, but also a sincere catholic. Zaragoza raised in arms to protect Pérez, freeing him from the Inquisition's jail, and the king made the army intervine, occupying the city. Antonio fled to Bearn and began a exile of 20 years which took him to France and England, always conspiring with Spain's enemies. He died in Paris in 1612, without the pardon from Philip III he desperately sought in his last years.

A great book in so many ways, probably too detailed for those not harboring a deep interest in the man and the epoch, but a true delight for those of us who do. Marañón wrote this volume ten years after his Olivares : his insights (on the human condition, on Renaissance Spain, on separatism, on religious fanaticism, on exile, on nostalgia for the fatherland, on politics and power) reach new heights of wisdom, and his prose is as beautiful as ever.

perkunos SixtusVIth

Cornelio is there any way to get these books in the US? Even in Spanish...amazon doesn't carry them

Cornelio Sunday 8 Nov 2015

I'm finishing Marañón's excellent "Tiberius". You can read it here:

https://archive.org/details/tiberiusastudyin006458mbp

If you want to buy them in hard copy, go to amazon.es

Cornelio Saturday 19 Dec 2015

Some books I've read recently:

Tiberius, A Study in Resentment, by Gregorio Marañón. Through this book I learned what resentment really is, its causes, and its destructive effects on the human soul. I learned that, like the melancholic emperor, I am a man filled with resentment; and through Marañón's wisdom I devised some strategies to fight it within myself. Regarding the historical study in itself, it's really good, but due to the relative lack of sources I felt like Marañón's talent was underused in this book; he really shines in his studies of Golden Age Spain by simply reading everything about the man he's portraying (and by that I really mean everything: every letter written by and to him, every poem by or about him, every other studies written inside or outside Spain, any text or document on any european language that has any connection whatsoever to the subject of the biography) and then using all that amazing wealth of information to knit a subtle, exciting tapestry showcasing the man's flaws and also his strengths and triumphs in a truly memorable way. He cannot do that with Tiberius, but the book is worth reading only for his psychological insights on the emperor and its chapters on the meaning and consequences of resentment.

The Crusades Through Arab Eyes, by Amin Maalouf. The author is a lebanese-french novelist and journalist, whose ideological position I'd describe as "enlightened globalism". He loves ancient cultures and traditions, but he sees world peace as a worthier goal and hence his support of global governments. I wasn't expecting much when I bought this book; after the Paris attacks I wanted to read something from an arab perspective, to help me understand better the roots of the current conflicts. I had read some works about the crusades but always from an European perspective. This book has really surprised me: it's by far the most entertaining account on the Franj invasions I have ever read. Reading about the clashes for power among the muslims is very instructive and I learned a lot of new and (to me) surprising information -- for example that there few truly relevant arab figures in the Islamic reaction against the Franks: most of the great leaders were either kurds (Saladin) or turkic (the mamluks). I expected a more restrained style from Maalouf, due to his pacifism, but he really shines describing the great martial qualities of the Islamic leaders, their ascetic (or not) willpower and strength. I recommend this book.

Las Novelas de Torquemada, by Benito Pérez Galdós. Four novels in the style of Balzac about the social ascent of a 19th century usurer in the Madrid of the Restoration. Galdós historical novels (particularly his Episodios Nacionales ) can be useful for foreigners who want to learn about our history.

perkunos Sunday 20 Dec 2015

I actually own this book on the crusades, or did at one point (I can't locate on my shelves). It was fairly striking.
Maranon of course is wonderful; Tiberius will stick with me for a long time. The Peres book (unlike Olivares) has been translated to English.

O'Zebedee Sunday 27 Dec 2015

Anthony Burgess - Kingdom of the Wicked

Cornelio Monday 28 Dec 2015

Could you elaborate?

Richard Hollywood Monday 28 Dec 2015

Godfather of the Kremlin by Paul Klebnikov - This probably the best book on 90's Russia, at least in English. Klebnikov's focus here is on Boris Berezovskiy but he paints a wide, grim, and depressing tableau of the sheer misery, corruption, and violence which defined the post-Soviet years. Of special interest is his detailed descriptions of the specific mechanisms through which the oligarchs looted Russia.

The Insurgency in Chechnya and the North Caucasus: From Gazavat to Jihad by Robert W. Schaefer - An excellent history of Chechnya from the 19th century to the Second Chechen War, written by a former US Special Forces officer. The book is very much objective - unusual considering the author's background - and doesn't paint either side as the good or bad guys. It suffers a bit from military strategy jargon, but not so much that it's unreadable.

Niccolo and Donkey Monday 28 Dec 2015

Richard Hollywood

Thanks for the Schaefer recommendation, I just grabbed the book.

As you already know, I consider the Klebnikov book the most important entry point in understanding post-Cold War Russia and why Putin is where he is today.

Richard Hollywood Friday 1 Jan 2016

The Battle of the Casbah by General Paul Aussaresses - Paul Aussaresses was in charge of the counterinsurgency efforts in Algeria from 1955-1957. Instead of winning hearts and minds, the French tortured and killed a lot of Algerian rebels to excellent effect since torture works and the court system would've been ineffective for dealing with them. Cameo appearance by Jean Marie Le Pen, who at the time enjoyed picking fights with people at the bar of a posh hotel.

Random logic Tuesday 21 Jun 2016

The Complete Short Stories by Saki ( the nom de plume of British writer Hector Hugh Munro). Just bought this recently and it is brilliant. Very witty, outstanding vocabulary. Saki lived from 1870 until he was shot dead in the middle of WW1, so having a grasp of the time period he was living in and influenced by may help as he satirises Edwardian culture. The views come across as quite reactionary and aristocratic, and many of the societal jabs he takes will still ring true today, some examples in the first few short stories in the collection are women's inability in the art of gift giving and how the "chief vice" of the "Academy" and the art world is its pretentious nomenclature.
From my reading experience I can compare this to P.G Wodehouse but even silkier and more sophisticated. There are a few different versions of his collection out there I believe, this is the exact copy I have, which is wholly complete regarding his short stories.
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I believe Penguin have it published under a different cover now but the contents are the same.

Recommend Books on This Thread

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