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dasbooch's review against another edition
2.0
Richard Rhodes creates a disorganized, confusing and (mostly) non-Spanish centric history on the Spanish Civil War. Focusing mostly on foreign volunteers and journalists, with the exception of Franco, Picasso and a few Spanish doctors, Rhodes treats most of the Spanish men and women (who did the majority of fighting and suffering) as extras in a Hollywood movie. On top of that he bounces between the stories in a confusing manner and the chapters are set up in a meaningless manner that offer no needed organization. While his book is well researched and I did learn some things about the fascinating war, I don’t know who I would recommend this to. It is too confusing for those with a basic knowledge of the war, too basic for those with an advanced knowledge and too focused on foreigners and their lives, to explain the impact of the war on Spain or even the world for that matter.
heylook's review against another edition
2.0
Well-written, except I still don't know what exactly it was that connected the subjects of the book. Most of it is about people performing blood transfusions, but then it also talks about Picasso and Miro for a bit. It's like this is all the stuff somebody had to cut out of a larger book on the Spanish Civil War.
msartor53's review against another edition
2.0
I gave this book two stars because I feel like I did not come away with a deeper understanding of the Spanish Civil War. It almost felt like the feeling of the war was just an annoyance that had to be brought up again by the author. Also, in the World it made it part it focused to much on celebrities, especially famous Hemingway, Welles, Picaso and the few journals could get their hands on. I felt like I followed a clique rather than understanding how it shape the modern world.
radbear76's review against another edition
4.0
An informative book that taught me a great deal about the Spanish Civil War. I found it interesting that J.B.S. Haldane, whose work in population genetics plays a large role in the neo-Darwinian Synthesis, went to Spain many times as a technical advisor. His work along with others prefigured a great deal of the medical and defensive measures that would be used in the Second World War. Spain was also the proving ground for many offensive innovations that would become common place in that conflict. Not being an art fan, the exhaustive descriptions of Picasso's and Miro's processes for creating war inspired murals was lost on me.
jesssalexander's review against another edition
5.0
I'm usually not one to sit and read history books for fun but the Spanish Civil War is an obsession of mine and the Guernica on the book's cover caught my eye at the library. This book is a collection of different first hand and second hand accounts, snippets from the war, not really big picture stuff. The more I delve into this era the more complex it reveals itself to be. The accounts of the People's Olympics, medicinal advances and struggles of everyday citizens held my attention. This is not your average history book!
glennmiller5309's review against another edition
4.0
Wonderful overview of the Spanish Civil War. Rhodes focuses on key personalities foremost, followed by significant battles and developments of the 3-year conflict. What comes across strongly is that the war was a warm-up act for the horrific conflict that followed. Had Western nations thrown themselves into this proxy war, and had the Soviets not withdrawn, might World War II have been avoided? Did Hitler and Mussolini misinterpret the results of this war? Rhodes' book provides a well-written overview, but the supposed answers to these questions may need to be found in other volumes.
smonahan99's review against another edition
3.0
Well researched biography of some interesting international participants in the Spanish Civil War
However, it was very light on following the developments of the war itself and highlighting the actual Spaniards involved in the Republican effort
However, it was very light on following the developments of the war itself and highlighting the actual Spaniards involved in the Republican effort
sweetpotato39's review
adventurous
dark
informative
sad
medium-paced
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and War
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Child death
morgan_blackledge's review
4.0
Pulitzer Prize winning author of the making of the atomic bomb Richard Rhoads is no one hit wonder. All of his work is excellent. He reliably writes complex, humane, multifaceted, insightful and extraordinarily well researched histories of war and violence.
This book is no exception. It's about the Spanish Civil War. But far from a blow by blow description of battles and politics, it's a view from the ground as seen from some of the periods most important innovators, intellectuals and artists.
It's about Ernest Hemingway, Pablo Picasso, JBS Haldane, George Orwell and many others who became involved in the war for idealistic personal and professional reasons. It's about the scientific advances and artistic masterworks they created, born out of necessity. It's about blood and ink and oil paint. It's about the birth of modernity.
This fascinating little book will change the way I view this particular chunk of history. But perhaps more importantly it will change the way I view that generation of people. It was an exciting and horrific time and it was an amazing group of brilliant individuals that came together to fight fascism.
This book is no exception. It's about the Spanish Civil War. But far from a blow by blow description of battles and politics, it's a view from the ground as seen from some of the periods most important innovators, intellectuals and artists.
It's about Ernest Hemingway, Pablo Picasso, JBS Haldane, George Orwell and many others who became involved in the war for idealistic personal and professional reasons. It's about the scientific advances and artistic masterworks they created, born out of necessity. It's about blood and ink and oil paint. It's about the birth of modernity.
This fascinating little book will change the way I view this particular chunk of history. But perhaps more importantly it will change the way I view that generation of people. It was an exciting and horrific time and it was an amazing group of brilliant individuals that came together to fight fascism.