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Basque Studies Program Newsletter · Issue 47, 1993 Something for Everyone The Basque Book Series has grown to thirty-one titles and is still expanding. This series, created for those with an interest in Basque culture, history, and language, truly offers something for everyone. From A to Z (Aulestia to Zulaika), the authors in the series provide us with information about Euskara, Basque violence, cooking, literature, grammar, nationalism, the sheepherder experience, immigration, history, folklore, and ETA. The wonderful novels of Robert Laxalt transport us to another time and make us feel what it was like to grow up in a Basque immigrant family. And other authors share their view of the Basque diaspora with us. Good news for Laxalt fans. The first volume in his Basque-family trilogy, The Basque Hotel, is now available in paperback. This book was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. The second book in the trilogy, Child of the Holy Ghost, takes Peter, whom we met in The Basque Hotel, back to his parents’ native land to learn more about his mother’s past. One of Laxalt’s earlier books, A Cup of Tea in Pamplona, earned him one of Spain’s most prestigious literary honors, the Tambor de Oro, in 1986. Cup of Tea is also now available in paperback. Another paperback release is the popular Traditional Basque Cooking by José María Busca Isusi. It covers the history and preparation of the best cuisine the Iberian peninsula has to offer. Three new books in the series reflect its broad scope and varied interests: The Deep Blue Memory, Solitude, and Improvisational Poetry from the Basque Country. Monique Urza’s The Deep Blue Memory is an intimate portrait of a second-generation Basque-American who struggles to reconcile her memories of the past with the reality of the present. Critics call Urza a “poet in prose,” her story “superbly rendered.” On the scholarly front, Gorka Aulestia’s Improvisational Poetry from the Basque Country introduces the bertsolari to an American audience. Aulestia discusses the history of the bertsolari phenomenon, explains the different aspects of the art, and discusses some of the great names in the field. The bertsolaris stand before an audience and improvise verses on given topics to the tune of old songs or new melodies. And finally, Carmelo Urza’s Solitude: Art and Symbolism in the National Basque Monument takes the reader from the genesis of the project to the planning and organization, the support of Basques from all over, through the dedication of the monument itself. Urza tells us about the competition that was held to determine the design of the monument and about the debate that has raged over the final choice, the modern sculpture created by famed Basque artist Nestor Basterretxea. The book contains over sixty photographs, one-third of them in color, and the author’s direct, informal style makes us feel a part of the whole project, from beginning to end. |
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