The Enchanting Tale of Guernica by Dave Boling
The Characters in a Small Village in Spain Defend Their Culture
Jun 30, 2009
The small village of Guernica is in Basque country, in the northernmost part of Spain, bordering France. In his novel, Boling creates an amazing array of characters, while telling a gruesome and sad history at the same time.
Love in the Basque Country
The theme most prevalent is that of love. There are a variety of main characters, all of whom deal with love, and its loss, differently.
The love of Justo and Mariangles is so deep, so beautiful and real, the reader can feel their warmth. Love goes hand in hand with honor, and although Justo boasts about being the most handsome man in the village, his eyes never stray from his wife.
Miren, their daughter, has grown up with the love of her parents as her role model, and she will expect nothing less. She is, perhaps, a prime example of what it means to have parents so happily in love with one another and with life in general.
And so it is that when Miren meets Miguel, she expects from him exactly what she has grown up with. Although she is much like her mother, Miguel is not like Justo. He is quiet, a thinker and carpenter, where Justo is loud and gregarious.
Their love as couples run parallel throughout the novel, right up to the point of tragedy. This is where love truly shows its face.
The overall love of family is central as well. Family is all important, and you do what you must to protect and cherish them. It is also fully and entirely unconditional, but again, Boling does this without hitting the reader over the head with it. It is subtle and simple, and yet astoundingly effective.
Tragedy and War in Guernica
This novel is based on the true history of Guernica at the beginning of World War II.
Although it had no military quarters whatsoever, it happened to be at a crossroads of several major cities that were being bombed by Franco, who at the time was trying to bring the Basque country firmly in line with Spain.
It is here the refugees and soldiers are assumed to be heading, and so it is here, in this village of innocent land holders, the bombing began in earnest.
And so it is here that love is tested. Miren, her newborn daughter Catalina and her mother Mariangeles are all in town when the bombs come. One moment, the reader is with them, running. The next, they are gone forever. It is a shattering moment.
Miguel runs to town to look for his wife, whom he refuses to believe is dead. He is so out of his mind with determination, he works his fingers, literally, to the bone moving buildings off people. Several fingers on both hands are amputated. For a talented carpenter who did intricate design work, this is indeed a horror on top of the one he already faces.
Justo too runs to town in an attempt to find his daughter, granddaughter and wife. They are all gone, but like Miguel, he tears at the rubble of their village in vain hope. While saving a woman buried beneath a house, the house falls on him. He loses one arm, as well as his entire family.
What these men go through from here is a testament to their courage and the depths of their love. Justo denies his feelings at first, but then understands that his Mari would not want him to give up. Miguel, however, loses all interest in life without his soul mate and daughter. The two men become estranged, unable to reach out to one another through their mutual grief.
Renewal and Rebuilding in Guernica
After it was initially bombed to the ground, Guernica was not hit again. They began the slow process of rebuilding the village, and although they were half starved due to the soldiers who had made many of them slave labor, they continued to speak the Basque language; hidden on side streets, in their own homes, and sometimes even in public in an open act of defiance.
They kept their culture alive despite all efforts to crush it, and this is an amazing feat indeed in the midst of war and famine.
The story of these families, as well as a host of other brilliantly portrayed characters, is heart rending but uplifting at the same time, as it shows just how strong love can be, and just how resilient it can make you even when it is lost.
The Author
Guernica (2009, Picador ISBN: 9780330460668) is Dave Boling's first novel, although he has been a sportswriter for a number of years.
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