Librería Samer Atenea
Librería Aciertas (Toledo)
Kálamo Books
Librería Perelló (Valencia)
Librería Elías (Asturias)
Donde los libros
Librería Kolima (Madrid)
Librería Proteo (Málaga)
'To have lived to the full, to have loved, to have fought, to have killed: that is a man’s life. And even though the price be death, it would be cheap at that.' As chronicled in this extraordinary memoir, André Spada (1897 - 1935), the infamous Corsican bandit known as the 'King of the Maquis,' embodied a complex amalgam not only of Good and Evil but also of contrary emotions and perceptions. These include compassion and kindness as well as those cold-blooded instincts that eclipse the humanity of those driven by abject criminality. Thus, we have the 'two Spadas.' But beyond the idiosyncratic biography of a particular individual, it’s through this confession that we gain entrée to a uniquely structured demimonde: the world of honorable bandits known as the Maquisards, constructed upon a rigid set of codes. Part of that pledge is to never betray their leader, even when a steep price is placed on his head. And even after a French expeditionary force is sent into Corsica with the sole purpose of rooting out the bandits. The military contingent is composed of tanks, planes, mountain artillery, a cannon, explosives, armored cars, field kitchens, and 1,400 troops; yet they fail to capture Spada and are eventually withdrawn. But a police campaign finally succeeds in forcing Spada out of his lair and driving him across the island. Available for the first time since 1935, this annotated edition features an in-depth Afterword by literary author Rob Couteau.
