Guernica

Pablo Picasso's 'Guernica' is one of the few paintings I can remember from Art and History classes at school. I think the reason why I have remembered it more than any other is because of the story it tells.

There's a novel by Dave Boling with the same title and it also tells the tale of the devastation of the Spanish town.

Guernica is centred around three generations of a Basque family. The book is structured to build up to the bombings by showing the strength of the Basque people. Then - three quarters in - the reader is exposed to the carnage that is made once the German planes attack the town. The aftermath and beyond makes up the final piece of the novel.

It's obviously hard creating fiction from a historic event but I think Boling did okay in this attempt. There's obvious parts in the story where his 'American' comes out but that's really just a minor nitpick.

I'd recommend this book to people who are currently learning about the painting or studying about the Spanish Civil War and the lead-up to World War II.

It's obviously not a 'real' story but it can be used as a portrait of the Basque people and of the devastation war had on the town just like Picasso conveyed in his piece.