From Fenland Flat to Spanish Mountain
ACCLAIMED AUTHOR of three books on Spain, Jason Webster, who spent his youth in
Swaffham Prior, returns to the area this month to speak on his new book, Sacred
Sierra.
From Swaffham Prior, Jason went to Oxford, took a degree in Arabic and then moved to Spain, where he found the inspiration for his books:
Duende - nominated for the Guardian First Book Award and read as Book of the Week on Radio 4; Andalus - dramatised for Radio 3;
Guerra - a thought provoking return to locations of the Spanish Civil War and currently the subject of much attention in Spain due to its first Spanish translation.
Five's - Andalusia: The Legacy of the Moors.
This latest book, Sacred Sierra, which brings Jason back to his family home in Swaffham Prior, vividly describes an almost forgotten (and gradually disappearing) way of life he and his wife, Salud, discovered when they bought a mountain and moved to an abandoned farmhouse in Castellon province, north-west of Valencia.
Jason's work also includes TV documentaries, one filmed in Cordoba with Rageh Omar and Channel, and articles for the national press, such as the Observer, Guardian, Sunday Times and New Statesman.
Duende was greatly enjoyed by Swaffham Prior Book Club, and details of his talk at Topping's of Ely can be found opposite and a promotional film of the book can be seen on Jason's website at www.jasonwebster.net. Interested readers can contact Karole Webster for further information, or if they are interested in sharing transport. Eds