16 Best Books to Read before Visiting Spain: A Reading Guide

Spain is my favourite country in Europe. Something about it just feels like home and I can’t explain it. This beautiful country is full of rich history, culture and tradition. And what a better way to understand it than reading books about it, especially before your trip, so you can better immerse yourself while there. In this blog post I am sharing with you 16 best books to read before visiting Spain. There are 8 fiction and 8 non-fiction books to choose from.

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Fiction Books to Read Before Visiting Spain

I’m a fiction-girl. Nothing feeds my soul better, beside travelling, than reading. You will always find me reading a classic: old or modern. Therefore, I’m starting the list of best books to read before you visit Spain with fiction.

The Shadow of the Wind, Carlos Ruiz Zafón

The Shadow of the Wind is the Spanish bestseller you have to read, especially if you’re going to Barcelona! The story is set in Barcelona in 1945, after the Spanish Civil War when a city is slowly healing from its wounds.

The main character is Daniel, an antiquarian book dealer’s son, whose father introduces him to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books after his mother’s death. Inside, Daniel finds a book The Shadow of the Wind by Julian Carax.

The book will unravel many mysteries, which is a perfect choice if you’re into hidden pasts and mysteries.

⭐️ 4.30 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

For Whom the Bell Tolls, Ernest Hemingway

📖 If you’re a Hemingway fan and you’ll visit Madrid soon, check out my Hemingway in Madrid: The Essential Books and Must-See Spots for Fans blog post.

For Whom the Bell Tolls is by far my favourite book of Don Ernesto (as he’s called in Spain), so if you haven’t read it yet, now is the time to do so!  It tells the story of Robert Jordan, an American dynamiter who fights alongside the Republicans during the Spanish Civil War. The novel explores themes of loyalty, love and sacrifice, while painting a vivid portrait of war-torn Spain.

⭐️ 3.98 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway

There will be a few works of Hemingway on this list because not only he was one of the greatest writers of the 20th century but also his time in Spain represents the heart of his work.

The Sun Also Rises follows a group of American and British expatriates as they travel from Paris to Pamplona to witness the bullfighting during the fiesta of San Fermin.

⭐️ 3.79 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Don Quixote, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

If there is one old Spanish classic you have to read, that is Don Quixote. I read some parts back in school (definitely need to re-read the whole book!) and I remember how I felt that the book is so ahead of its time and definitely not in line with medieval Europe. Which is exactly why Don Quixote has been generally recognised as the first modern novel.

It follows the story of a Spanish nobleman Alonso Quixano who becomes so obsessed with the tales of chivalry that he decides to become a knight-errant himself. He then goes on to recruit his squire, Sancho Panza, and they are set out on a series of adventures which turn to be comical and absurd.

⭐️ 3.90 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Tales of the Alhambra, Washington Irving

Washington Irving travelled from Madrid to Granada. As soon as he saw it, he described it as “a most picturesque and beautiful city, situated in one of the loveliest landscapes that I have ever seen.” 

In Tales of the Alhambra Washington brings the stories, legends and Moorish spirit to life, so if you’re heading to Granada (and Andalusia), this is a must-read!

⭐️ 3.74 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

The Last Jew, Noah Gordon

The Last Jew is a historical novel set during the Spanish Inquisition which follows the story of a young Jewish doctor Yankiel who converts to Christianity to save his life.

If you love reading books about Jewish identity and history and you’re travelling to Spain, this is a great read.

⭐️ 4.15 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Stories from Spain, Genevieve Barlow and William Stivers

Stories from Spain is a great read for anyone who is interested in Spanish culture books! It’s a collection of folk tales and legends that locals have passed down for generations.

What’s also great about this book is that it comes as bilingual, written in both English and Spanish, which is perfect if you’d love to pick up or even fluently learn Spanish language.

⭐️ 3.76 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Three Tragedies, Federico Garcia Lorca

Federico Garcia Lorca is one of Spain’s most deeply appreciated poets and dramatists.

Three Tragedies are written in the final years of Lorca’s life, before he was sadly assassinated by Franco’s soldiers during the Spanish Civil War. They talk about repression, ritual, desire and tradition.

His writing style combines surrealism and symbolism movements, so if you’re looking for a perfect mix of surrealism and symbolism imagery with Spanish tradition, this is your book! Not to mention, it’s a modern classic.

⭐️ 4.13 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Non-Fiction Books to Read Before Visiting Spain

Let’s see now which non-fiction books you should read before visiting Spain.

Ghosts of Spain: Travels Through Spain and its Silent Past, Giles Tremlett

Ghosts of Spain is a great book that combines the history of Spain and life today with a travelogue. It covers topics from the Spanish Civil War, Basque terrorists, why Catalans hate Madrid to the modern education system and views on feminism today.

⭐️ 3.92 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Barcelona: A Thousand Years of the City’s Past, Felipe Fernandez-Armesto

Felipe Fernandez-Armesto is a British professor of History and author of several works with focus on cultural and environmental history.

I’m always very vocal when I say that Barcelona is my favourite city in Europe. Everything about it is so unique, especially the architecture (thank you, Gaudi ❤️). So, if you’re planning to visit this amazing city soon and you’d love to learn more about its cultural history, then Barcelona: A Thousand Years of the City’s Past is a great start.

⭐️ 3.20 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Driving Over Lemons, Chris Stewart

If you’d like to learn more about Spain from the expat’s perspective, Driving Over Lemons is a great book.

It follows Stewart who, after leaving his job as a drummer for the rock band Genesis, decides to move to the remote Andalusian village of Las Alpujarras. He has to adapt now to life in a foreign country, but through this, he learns about the rich history and culture of the region.

⭐️ 3.84 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Discovering Spain: An Uncommon Guide, Penelope Casas

Discovering Spain: An Uncommon Guide is a great book because it’s organised by region and offers a wide range of things to do in each area, from local festivals and cultural attractions to outdoor activities.

Penelope Casas is a well-known Spanish cookbook author who blends the history, culture and food of Spain in this book. Do bear in mind that the book hasn’t been updated for quite some time now, however, it is still a great source for learning about Spain and planning your upcoming trip there.

⭐️ 3.95 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Homage to Catalonia, George Orwell

Homage to Catalonia is a great non-fiction book by one of the world’s best writers, George Orwell. He writes here about his experiences and famous accounts of the Spanish Civil War as he joined the fight against the Fascists.

“Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written, directly or indirectly, against totalitarianism and for democratic Socialism as I understand it.” George Orwell

⭐️ 4.09 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

The Ornament of the World: How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain, Maria Rosa Menocal

The Ornament of the World is a great book for understanding how the three Abrahamic religions and cultures created a culture of tolerance in Medieval Spain.

And the best way to witness this in real life? Go to Toledo. It’s nicknamed The City of Three Cultures because all three religions thrived there. The heritage is still present in today’s architecture which makes Toledo one of the most interesting towns in Spain to visit. It’s my favourite small town where you can learn a lot about Spanish history only by walking around its streets.

⭐️ 3.93 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Iberia, James A. Michener

Iberia is a book where non-fiction meets with fiction.

James A. Michener is a Pulitzer Prize Winner who writes about Spain’s history, culture and landscapes in a captivating way through the lives of fictional characters.

⭐️ 3.71 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Death in the Afternoon, Ernest Hemingway

“If you really want to learn about bullfighting, or if you are ever very interested, sooner or later you will have to go to Madrid”. Ernest Hemingway

Death in the Afternoon is a non-fiction book about the history, ceremony and traditions of Spanish bullfighting – a great read if you want to learn more about Spain too and understand better the themes Hemingway introduced in his novels set in Madrid and Spain.

⭐️ 3.68 Goodreads ✅ Get the book

Which one will be your first choice?

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