A Concise History of Spain

By: William Phillips Jr., Carla Rahn Phillips

Narrated by: Luis Soto

This audiobook traces Spain's development from prehistoric times to the present, focusing particularly on culture, society, politics, and personalities. It introduces listeners to key themes that have shaped Spain's history and culture, including its varied landscapes and climates; the impact of waves of diverse human migrations; the importance of its location as a bridge between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean and Europe and Africa; and religion, particularly militant Catholic Christianity and its centuries of conflict with Islam and Protestantism, as well as debates over the place of the Church in modern Spain.

Download the accompanying reference guide.©2010, 2016 William Phillips Jr. and Carla Rahn Phillips (P)2018 Naxos Audiobooks

Excellent and encompassing.

The focus was always on the most important things. I appreciated the evenhanded non idealogical approach to the history.

Heavily Focused on Leaders and Not the People

The book focuses too heavily on the leaders of Spain and too little about the people, culture, and economic landscape of it. Also sounds like it was written by a monarchist.

Struggling With Narrator

Hearing a British accent when learning about Spanish history is a let down. Plus, when the narrator pronounces words in Spanish it sounds like he is choking on his tongue- he over embellishes and over emphasizes, it is uncomfortable to hear.

Hard to listen to…like listening to an Enclyclopedia

As a social studies teacher I wanted to learn more about the history of Spain. Even being a lover of history, this was more like listening to an encyclopedia being read. I am not sure I retained one thing.

Underwhelmed

Audible SHOULD have a concise history of Spain. This one is more a tedious litany of dates, a conventional timeline history focusing on excessive detail without thoughtful big picture analysis. The lack of analytic perspective makes both text and voice rather monotonous without the texture and color this book deserves. I listened to the entire book because I am visiting Spain but this work could have been so much more.