Friday, June 2, 2017

PLEASE NOTE

Unlike most blogs that run backwards in time, I have arranged this one to read in the order of the trip. Ignore the dates of the posting.  Actual dates were 11 days in late April and into May.
Remember after finishing each page,  to hit the link "Older posts" in the bottom right of your screen to move ahead.  All of the blog will not load at one time.
For the most part I have not tried to figure which places have copyrights for photos and which do not.  Rather than copying them, I've just linked to them whenever the photos there or the information added to what I was reporting. 
The rest of the photos are my own, taken for the most part with my little point and shoot camera.  There are a few sent from Frank as well.
If you use photos from the blog, please include a link to this  blog as your source.
Elizabeth reports having trouble going to links and not having to refind where she left off reading.  She has a MAC.  That may make a difference.  I can't help thinking, however, that it depends on some settings she has on her computer.  When I hit a link and then hit the back arrow, I go back to where I left off reading.

I like comments and encourage them here.  Remember that they are moderated, so it may take a while for you to see your comments posted.  I have to do that to avoid posting spam. 
Enjoy.

Thursday, June 1, 2017

FRANK'S BOOK

Recently, my old friend Frank Vielba published a book in English on the life of his mother who lived from 1907 until 2010.



https://www.amazon.com/dp/1537602357/?tag=allamerspea-20

Trinidad was born in Hervas, one of twelve, and lived a simple, hard working life. The story of her life reveals what it was like for such a person to be in Spain throughout some of the most turbulent years, including political and social revolution.
I had read the book in computer email version and wanted to buy a few copies, have Frank sign them, and distribute them as gifts. Meeting him in Spain seemed a fine opportunity to do that. He carried the books from near London (where he lives) to Madrid, and I carried them from Madrid to Albany, New York where I live.
Meeting in Madrid, we would be able to catch up on our lives since our last meet up, years ago.
It also seemed a great idea because at that time the book could not be purchased on Amazon in the US, but only in the UK, so most of the people I recommended read it, could not buy a copy.
Since then the distribution has increased to include the USA.

I was delighted to see the format of the published book. It was a large paperback and Frank had arranged it to be double spaced, so it was was comfortable even for my old eyes.
The only downside was that none of the books I bought from Frank allowed recipients to post a review on Amazon. To post a review, one must buy directly from Amazon. So there are many copies of the book being circulated that preclude reviews.
If anyone reading the blog buys a copy, even in Kindle version, please write a review of the book.

In addition to obtaining copies of the book, Frank took me on a tour of his mother's village, Hervas http://spaintravelswithpaco.blogspot.com/2017/05/hervas.html


and introduced me to those of his cousins who still live in this delightful village. He showed me where his mother had lived her younger years. It was good background for my second read of the book.
The book is especially interesting to readers who like to view history from the perspective of the common people who lived in the times.  Spain went through enormous changes during the life of Frank's mother, and how she and her family viewed them and faced them makes for fine reading. 

Perhaps in future years the book will also be printed in Spanish.