La Gran aventura del reino de Asturias: Asi comenzó la reconquista (The Great Adventure of The Kingdom of Asturias: How the Reconquest Started) has been probably my favorite read of 2020. This book is fantastic. It narrates the history of the Kingdom of Asturias starting from the Visigothic Kingdom, and its fall under the hands of the Umayyad Caliphate, to later its evolution to the Kingdom of Leon. You’ll read about the different phases of the Asturian kingdom. From surviving annihilation, to consolidation, and finally expansion. You’ll read about the birth of the counties of Castile and Portugal in liege to Asturias, the establishment of the Kingdom of Navarra, and birth of the Frankish counties of Aragon and Catalonia. Also the role that the Franks played during this era.
An important element of this book that I really enjoyed is that it goes equally into incredibly detail of the history of Al-Andalus.
The history of The Kingdom of Asturias literally felt like it came straight from an epic fantasy novel. I love reading fantasy novels because of the incredible immersion they provide, and I definitely felt deeply immerse reading this book. Not to mentioned that kings, knights, epic battles, political intrigue, and magic are all included here! Which was very fitting when I saw the following tweet posted by the official Spanish tourism account:
Don’t get weirded out if you come across a fairy or a dragon in Covadonga! We could swear this place comes straight out of a fairytale! #VisitSpain #Covadonga #SpainCulturalHeritage @TurismoAsturias pic.twitter.com/VTxLJjgEZl
— Spain (@spain) November 26, 2018
The author’s eloquent writing is fantastic, and to be admired given the sources during this period of history are limited. He constantly reminded us what is myth and what possibly happened. I really hope this book gets an English translation soon, so everyone can read and learn the spectacular history of The Kingdom of Asturias.