Basque Historical Fiction

Electrodomésticos is an elegant yet powerful depiction of the post Spanish Civil War era, where class divisions lay bare those who can afford to eat a decent meal and those who can not. Josu is an inexperienced electrician, tasked with installing an oven in the home of an upper-class Basque couple. He’s completely captivated. But the couple, though they seem to have it all, are in a prison of their own. Mesmerizing in its subtlety and sinister intimations, Electrodomésticos reveals the poverty and loneliness of this era.

Award-winning author Mark Kurlansky has drawn enthusiastic praise for his books, which are sharply-focused studies as well as glorious celebrations of their subjects. In The Basque History of the World, he turns his eye toward Europe’s oldest surviving culture - a culture as mysterious as it is fascinating. Settled in the western Pyrenees Mountains of France and Spain, the Basque nation is not drawn on maps and the origin of their forbidden language has never been discovered.

After the sudden death of his father, young Mark Vergara, the oldest son of immigrant parents, was thrust into the role of principal breadwinner, working hard in the beet fields of Colorado to support his family. After joining the Army Air Corps and flying dozens of combat missions, he bore the physical and emotional scars of his time in the service, yet he was satisfied he had fulfilled his father's final wish that he do right by his family.

Quand il arrive à Irún où il espère rejoindre sa famille, Aïta trouve la maison vide. Le gâteau de riz abandonné révèle un départ précipité. En ce mois d'août 1936, le Pays basque espagnol risque de tomber entre les mains des franquistes. Aïta sait que ses beaux-frères sont des activistes. Informé par une voisine, il parvient à retrouver les siens à Hendaye. Ama, leurs trois fils, les grands-parents et les oncles ont trouvé refuge dans une maison amie. Aucun d'eux ne sait encore qu'ils ne reviendront pas en Espagne.

Road Movie antzeko bat Euskal Herrian barrena. Uliak bere sorterria erakutsi nahi dio bikotekideari, eta ibilbide lasai bat prestatzen dute, udan zehar, bigarren mailako errepideetan, Gustavoren BMW berrian egiteko. Dena ez da horren lasaia, ordea. Uliak badu aitortu gabeko sekreturik eta bidean topaturiko ezagunen batek ekaitza iragartzen du bikotearen harmonian, zeruko laino beltzen antzera.

Egiazko pertsonaiek eta gertakariek bilbatzen dute Kirmen Uriberen hirugarren eleberriko kontakizuna: Karmele Urresti eta Txomin Letamendiren askatasun egarria eta erresistentzia bipila. Gerra galdua zelarik Euskal Herrian, Karmele erizain ondarrutarrak eta Txomin musikari bilbotarrak Eresoinka taldean ezagutu zuten elkar, Paristik gertu, Belloy jauregian; eta han topo egin zuten aspaldiko lagun batzuek ere, Antonio Gezala margolariak eta Manu Sota idazleak.