Reading for the Road:
Our Favourite Books About Andalucia

Christine Tucker

Spain | Andalucia

At The Slow Road we answer to many names (wanderers, bon vivants, students of life) but first and foremost, we’re a group of dedicated travellers.

That’s why we love compiling reading lists that include those books—from novels to memoirs, and everything in between—that have really opened up our favourite regions.

In this post we’ll round up a few of our favourite books about Andalucia, a land of endless olive groves, Roman ruins and Baroque churches, where you’ll find the essence of Spain at every turn while basking in the sunshine.

Must-Read Books About Andalucia

Ghosts of Spain

By Giles Tremlett

Tremlett captures Spanish character, history and modern politics in this masterful portrait, interweaving the story of his love for the country (where he has lived for 20 years) with interviews, anecdotes and observation.

Learn more on Amazon >>

Food and Wines of Spain

By Penelope Casas

This classic cookbook brings more than 400 of the traditional foods of Spain—with their extraordinary range of flavours—into the home kitchen. To search out the finest Spanish recipes, Penelope Casas travelled over 25,000 miles, crisscrossing the country.

Learn more on Amazon >>

Spain, The Root and the Flower

By John A. Crow

Take this book with you to Spain: an absorbing, well-written account of Spanish cultural history.

This book spans from prehistory to the time of the Romans, Jews, Moors, and the Golden Age— to Franco and his legacy in modern Spain.

Learn more on Amazon >>

Andalus: Unlocking the Secrets of Moorish Spain

By Jason Webster

Jason Webster originally travelled to Spain to play the flamenco guitar. A qualified Arabist, he now embarks on a quest for Spain’s forgotten Arab legacy and gets embroiled with characters who are as wild and original as those he described so vividly in Duende.

Learn more on Amazon >>

Concerning the Angels

By Rafael Alberti

First published in Spain in the summer of 1929, Concerning the Angels (Sobre los angeles) is the great Spanish poet Rafael Alberti’s masterpiece, on a par with T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land, Pablo Neruda’s Residencia en la tierra, and Federico Garcia Lorca’s Poeta en Nueva York.

Learn more on Amazon >>

Christine Tucker

After growing up on the Texas shores of the Gulf of Mexico, Trip Designer Christine Tucker spent fourteen years working as a means to travel, and then travelling as a means to work. Her experiences are a testament to her approach to life—a subtle mixture of playfulness and seriousness.