A feeling for Spain

As the author of the highly acclaimed Duende, Andalus, Guerra and Sacred Sierra, it is fair to say that Jason Webster has a feeling for Spain. Where so many have tried to come to come to grips with this fascinating country Webster seems to have a secret formula – he simply immerses himself and gets under the skin of one of Europe’s most multi-layered cultures.

“Spain is a country that repays your interest in it,” says Jason Webster as we sit in his country cottage on the outskirts of Valencia. All around are fields, though the city rises up no more than a few kilometres distant. It shows just how assimilated he has become, for where most foreigners seek the Spanish seaside or at least the elegant avenues of downtown Valencia, Jason has chosen a spot amid everyday Spanish people. “It always surprises me when people move here saying they love Spain, only to settle down in a Disney-style caricature of it.” As always, his comment contains no hint of judgement; instead, it is the kind of observation that has formed the basis of his writing on Spain.

Though they delve headlong into Spain’s past and present, Webster’s books have a knack of taking you on a journey that describes the country without ever passing moral judgement or attempting to persuade the reader in one direction or another. “I have my views, but when I write I don’t like to be didactic.” What’s more, the information contained within his novels are not merely researched and re-interpreted, but primarily sourced through first-hand personal experience. “When I describe gypsies and the flamenco scene in Duende, or Moroccan migrants in Andalus, I draw on my own body of encounters,” says the young author whose willingness to plunge headlong into adventures has formed part of his immersion in Spain’s multi-faceted society.

“Maybe it would have been wiser to think before I acted. Some of the situations I got myself in were actually quite scary and potentially dangerous, but what it has done is shown me sides of Spain that I would otherwise never have seen.” Perhaps this accounts for the success of his books, for unlike many he doesn’t merely dip his toe in the water but dives right in. I get the impression Jason likes it this way, and that he is secretly attracted to the shadier sides of society. Let others describe the pretty buildings, the mighty sierras and the picturesque mountain villages that still retain much of Spain’s famed old charm. For Jason Webster it is the underlying clash of classes, cultures and generations that are worth writing about.

The interaction between these layers of society holds his fascination, in all its dysfunctional cohesion. “We think of societies as homogenous, but they’re not, least of all in a country like Spain. A society is often a pact between many different groups of people and it is the degree of cohesion that allows it to function. I’m interested in the invisible glue that holds it all together – or doesn’t.” Such themes rise to the fore in all his books, whether you’re following his exploration of the flamenco world, his travels with migrant workers or his journey into Spain’s divisive past. “The Civil War is over, but its divisions and tensions still simmer, and need confronting before they can finally be laid to rest.”

As a student of Spanish, Arabic and Islamic culture, he is also drawn to the stuff that binds Catholic Spain to the Islamic world. “Though it blocked it out for many centuries Spain has a partly Muslim past. This means that part of its identity derives from this period. To shut it out doesn’t make it go away, it is merely a denial. After centuries of such denial, the current era seems to be one in which Spain, one way or another, is exploring its Muslim past. It will be interesting to see what conclusions will be reached, but for me it is exactly this West-meets-East blend that makes Spain so interesting and multi-layered. You need only look at the Alhambra to confirm its role in the making of this fascinating country.”

The Bulls Kills You is Jason Webster’s fifth and most recent novel. It is the first in a new detective novel set featuring Chief Inspector Max Cámara of the Spanish Policía Nacional and is set in Valencia, Webster’s adopted home.

www.jasonwebster.net

New post on at Monday, 2 August, 2010, 9:28 am and is archived in Culture, Lifestyle, People. Subscribe to answers with RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.