Rick Steves Home > 2008 Tours > Best of Barcelona & Madrid in 8 Days

Best of Barcelona & Madrid in 8 Days: Recommended Reading & Viewing

Spain is overwhelmingly rich in history, art and culture. Any preliminary reading, viewing or listening you can do will help you get the most from your trip. Here's a list of some sources we've found helpful. For more information on any of these books, visit your favorite bookstore or check out amazon.com; for video information, go to imdb.com. Rick Steves guidebooks are available at our office in Edmonds and also on our website's Travel Store.

Recommended Reading

Non–Fiction

• Homage to Catalonia – George Orwell
• Barcelona: the Great Enchantress – Robert Hughes
• Homage to Barcelona – Colm Tóibín
• Gaudi: The Biography – Gijs van Hensbergen
• Travelers' Tales: Spain – Lucy McCauley
• Discovering Spain: An Uncommon Guide – Penelope Casas
• Tapas: The Little Dishes of Spain – Penelope Casas

Fiction

• The City of Marvels – Eduardo Mendoza
• The Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafón
• The Truth About the Savolta Case – Eduardo Mendoza
• The Flanders Panel – Arturo Perez–Reverte
• Death of a Nationalist – Rebecca Pawel
• Winter in Madrid – C. J. Sansom

General Europe

• Europe 101 – Rick Steves & Gene Openshaw: A fun and informative look at European history and art; including the Italian Renaissance.
• A World Lit Only by Fire – William Manchester: Vivid account of Europe's transition from the Roman Empire to the Reformation and the Renaissance.
• Innocents Abroad – Mark Twain: Classic, humorous account of an American group's 1867 "Grand Tour" through Europe and the Holy Land.
• Civilization – Kenneth Clark: BBC–TV series and book that teaches European art and civilization like nothing else.
• Connections – James Burke: Fascinating book and TV series that links historical events and scientific discoveries across the centuries.

Rick Steves' Travel DVDs

For a fun, informative preview of your next tour destination, watch a DVD from our "Rick Steves' Europe" TV series! Our online Travel Store has 70 shows available on 12 DVDs (a generous five to eight shows per disc).

Films With an Spanish Accent

The Mystery of Picasso (1956) • El Gran Gata (2003) • Gaudi Afternoon (2001) •Blood Wedding (1981) • Carmen (1983) • El Amor Brujo (1986) • Barcelona (1994) • Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988) • Volver (2006) • Pereira Declares (1996) • Capitães de Abril (2000) • L’Auberge Espagnole (2002) • Todo Sobre Mi Madre (1999)

Mood Music

Georges Bizet – Carmen (opera); Joaquin Rodrigo – classical guitar; Andres Segovia – classical guitar; Paco Peña – Misa Flamenca: (classical guitar and chorus); Paco de Lucia – flamenco guitar; Placido Domingo – Three Tenors, from Madrid; José Carreras – Three Tenors, from Barcelona