The Gastronomical Arts in Spain includes essays that span from the medieval to the contemporary world, providing a taste of the many ways in which the art of gastronomy developed in Spain over time. This collection encompasses a series of cultural objects and a number of interests, ranging from medicine to science, from meals to banquets, and from specific recipes to cookbooks. The contributors consider Spanish cuisine as presented in a variety of texts, including literature, medical and dietary prescriptions, historical documents, cookbooks, and periodicals. They draw on literary texts in their socio-historical context in order to explore concerns related to the production and consumption of food for reasons of hunger, sustenance, health, and even gluttony. Structured into three distinct "courses" that focus on the history of foodstuffs, food etiquette, and culinary fashion, The Gastronomical Arts in Spain brings together the many sights and sounds of the Spanish kitchen throughout the centuries.

"The Gastronomical Arts in Spain includes essays that span from the medieval to the contemporary world, providing a taste of the many ways in which the art of gastronomy developed in Spain over time. This collection encompasses a series of cultural objects and a number of interests, ranging from medicine to science, from meals to banquets, and from specific recipes to cookbooks. The contributors consider Spanish cuisine as presented in a variety of texts, including literature, medical and dietary prescriptions, historical documents, cookbooks, and periodicals. They draw on literary texts in their socio-historical context in order to explore concerns related to the production and consumption of food for reasons of hunger, sustenance, health, and even gluttony. Structured into three distinct "courses" that focus on the history of foodstuffs, food etiquette, and culinary fashion, The Gastronomical Arts in Spain brings together the many sights and sounds of the Spanish kitchen throughout the centuries."--

This collection of essays provides a panoramic view of Spanish gastronomy and etiquette from the Middle Ages to the present.

“Brings to life—with real heart, history and technique—an astonishing look at the legacy of Spain’s flavorful meats.” —José Andrés, 2011 “Outstanding Chef,” James Beard Foundation Charcutería: The Soul of Spain is the first book to introduce authentic Spanish butchering and meat-curing techniques to the American market. Included are more than 100 traditional Spanish recipes, straightforward illustrations providing easy-to-follow steps for amateur and professional butchers, and gorgeous full-color photography of savory dishes, Iberian countrysides, and centuries-old Spanish cityscapes. Author Jeffrey Weiss has written an entertaining, extravagantly detailed guide on Spain’s unique cuisine and its history of charcutería, which is deservedly becoming more celebrated on the global stage. While Spain stands porky cheek-to-jowl with other great cured-meat-producing nations like Italy and France, the charcuterie traditions of Spain are perhaps the least understood of this trifecta. Americans have most likely never tasted the sheer eye-rolling deliciousness that is cured Spanish meats: chorizo, the garlic-and-pimentón-spiked ambassador of Spanish cuisine; morcilla, the family of blood sausages flavoring regional cuisine from Barcelona to Badajoz; and jamón, the acorn-scented, modern-day crown jewel of Spain’s charcutería legacy. Charcutería: The Soul of Spain is a collection of delicious recipes, uproarious anecdotes, and time-honored Spanish culinary traditions. The author has amassed years of experience working with the cured meat traditions of Spain, and this book will surely become a standard guide for both professional and home cooks. “A lovely, loving, fascinating, and, most all, useful book all lovers of the craft should be grateful for.” —Michael Ruhlman, James Beard Award-winning author of Ruhlman’s Twenty

Emerging from a richly diverse oral narrative tradition, the heroic tale of the young Cid appears in multiple textual manifestations. From its first appearance circa 1300, the dynamic narrative of the legendary deeds of this young Castilian warrior eclipses the uninspired, matter-of-fact narration of the reign of Fernando I into which it is incorporated. In its analysis of the Mocedades de Rodrigo, the epic poem of Cid’s youth, Speaking Truth to Power identifies the narrative cohesion and the aesthetic principles that elevated the story of the young Cid to its place of prominence among the epic narratives of medieval Spain. Examining the evolution of the narrative through various textual versions, Matthew Bailey highlights the permutations that propelled the young Cid’s unparalleled popularity. The book traces this vibrant narrative tradition from its earliest manifestation in the aftermath of Charlemagne’s imperial mission in Spain to the early modern drama of Guillén de Castro. It convincingly discerns the leadership qualities and the social impact of its legendary protagonists, from their manifestation in the Latin chronicles of early Iberia through the Renaissance, incorporating a wealth of previous scholarship in its innovative findings. Speaking Truth to Power provides readers with a heightened appreciation for the vibrancy of the poetic tradition that lives beyond the texts we study, the oral narratives that are continually refashioned for new audiences and contexts.

Catalan Cinema offers a theoretical reading of the most relevant cinematic productions to emerge from Catalonia in the last twenty years. The essays in this collection examine cinema in relation to the Escola de Barcelona (The Barcelona School), a group of cinema directors that drew inspiration from British pop-art, Free Cinema, and the Nouvelle Vague to create works that defied and challenged the Franco dictatorship. Highlighting the aesthetic, social, and political elements of Catalan cinematography, contributors to this volume explore what young directors have in common with works created by more notable directors such as Joaquim Jordà, Jacinto Esteva, Jordi Grau, and Pere Portabella. Catalan Cinema focuses on the importance of modern production and its connection with the avant-garde and underground cinema from the Barcelona School. Establishing a cinematic genealogy, the volume ultimately questions if Catalan cinema’s own push for self-expression may be interpreted as a connection to Catalonia’s current drive for independence.

The word "bibliophilia" indicates a love of books, both as texts to be read and objects to be cherished for their physical qualities. Throughout the history of Iberian print culture, bibliophiles have attempted to explain the psychological experiences of reading and collecting books, as well as the social and economic conditions of book production. Bibliophiles, Murderous Bookmen, and Mad Librarians analyses Spanish bibliophiles who catalogue, organize, and archive books, as well as the publishers, artists, and writers who create them. Robert Richmond Ellis examines how books are represented in modern Spanish writing and how Spanish bibliophiles reflect on the role of books in their lives and in the histories and cultures of modern Spain. Through the combined approaches of literary studies, book history, and the book arts, Ellis argues that two strains of Spanish bibliophilia coalesce in the modern period: one that envisions books as a means of achieving personal fulfilment, and another that engages with politics and uses books to affirm linguistic, cultural, and regional and national identities.

Barcelona, City of Margins studies the creation of a space of dissent in the 1950s and 1960s that became the pillar of the protest movements during the final years of the Franco dictatorship and the transition to democracy. This space of dissent took shape in the margins of what is considered the official space of the city of Barcelona, revealing the interconnection of urbanism, literature, and photography in the formation of the political, social, and cultural movements to come in the 1970s. Olga Sendra Ferrer draws from theoretical readings on built environments, neighbourhoods, housing projects and developments, and everyday life within Spanish urban spaces. Literature and photography demonstrate the political value of cultural production and forms of cultural representation that occur from peripheral zones – those pushed aside by exclusionary politics, fascist forms of control, surveillance, and homogenization. In search of the origins of the protest movements and counter culture that would come in the final years of the Franco regime, Barcelona, City of Margins asserts the value of urban movement and cultural practice as a challenge to the spatial and urbanistic regime of Francoism.

The Ibero-American Baroque is an interdisciplinary, empirically-grounded contribution to the understanding of cultural exchanges in the early modern Iberian world.

The first-ever biography of Ferran Adrià, the chef behind Spain's renowned El Bulli restaurant, by one of the world's foremost food authorities. Ferran Adrià is arguably the greatest culinary revolutionary of our time. Hailed as a genius and a prophet by fellow chefs, worshipped (if often misunderstood) by critics and lay diners alike, Adrià is imitated and paid homage to in professional kitchens, and in more than a few private ones, all over the world. In his lively close-up portrait of Adrià, award-winning food writer Colman Andrews traces this groundbreaking chef 's rise from resort- hotel dishwasher to culinary deity, and the evolution of El Bulli from a German-owned beach bar into the establishment voted annually by an international jury to be "the world's best restaurant." With a new afterword for the paperback edition, Ferran brings to life the most exciting food movement of our time and illuminates the ways in which Adrià has forever altered our understanding and appreciation of food and cooking.