Those I Love the Best

Well, this is a bit like a mother telling the world who her favorite child is, but let's face it, while I think everything I work on here at the CBS has its merits, I do have some favorites, which I am going to share with you. (Hope I don't give the others a complex!)

1. Oui Oui Oui of the Pyrenees

From the first time that I read the typewritten manuscript by local Reno native and artist Mary Jean Etcheberry Morton, I was hooked on this story the little Basque girl Maite and beloved goose Oui Oui Oui. Then I saw the illustrations! This book was really a labor of love and I am very proud of it.

2. Buffalotarrak

Working with editor David Romtvedt is a pleasure, and I really like the Western focus and the fact that these were in the most part essays written by locals of Buffalo, Wyoming make this a fascinating read. While this was published before, we worked a lot on refining the essays and gave it our own imprint. Plus, its title is great! It is a composed Basque word meaning "the people from Buffalo." I think it sounds great!

3. Basque Pelota: A Ritual, an Aesthetic

This is a really interesting study by Olatz Gonzalez Abrisketa in the Basque Country that I think goes well beyond the sport to teach a lot about Basque culture and worldview. But again, I see beyond the text to the work that was put in by everyone involved, the translator, the author, the editors.

4. Our Wars

This collection of stories on violence in the Basque Country contains some of the most important current Basque writers and some of the stories have become personal all-time favorites. But I don't think that is exactly what makes it my favorite. I think it is, as with many of these stories, how much work we put in (myself, the translators, the editor Mikel Ayerbe, the copyeditor and proofreader). At time this book felt like pulling teeth, but the result seems effortless, as good fiction should.

5. Alejandro Aldekoa
This was one of my first books here, and I still find it a good read, even for a book that is pretty heavily musical oriented. My favorite part is how personally involved the author, Sabin Bikandi, got with his subject, the titular dance music master. Through his story one learns much not only about Basque music and dance, but also about Baque culture in general.

The next five:

6. Linguae Vasconum Primitiae. The first book ever published in Basque, by the poet Bernard Etxepare, about whom very little is known, but he spends time not only elevating Basque, but also defending women and celebrating lost loves.

7. War, Exile, Justice, and Everyday Life, 1936-1945. Edited by Sandy Ott, this is excellent history that I would put against anything published by Cambridge, Harvard, or Chicago.

8. Joanes 1 and 2. These could be higher, but we get them pretty much finished, by master graphic artist Guillermo Zubiago. One might notice that a trend in my favorites is how much work I put in, this one is the exact opposite for me, and is also a good reason to love this story of the Basque whaler Joanes. I can't wait for #3!

9. The Basques of Lapurdi, Zuberoa, and Lower Navarre: Their History and Their Traditions. Philippe Veyrin's 1942 classic on the Northern Basques. A little quaint sometimes, but a really readable ethnography, two words that don't always go together.

10. Living Boundaries: Frontiers and Identity in the Basque Country. An excellent anthropological study by Zoe Bray. It could go higher, but also as it was published previously this didn't mean a ton of work for me or the CBS. But an enjoyable read nonetheless, I especially liked the chapter on social interactions, or "going out on the town."

Next up: The Ones to Watch for: Favorites we are working on now!

Welcome to Chivo Bravo

Hello world, kaixo lagunak, bienvenidos al chivo bravo. Daniel Montero naiz, Renon bizi naiz (sorry my Basque sucks!), I am Daniel Montero, living in Reno, Nevada, born in Winnemucca, Nevada, citizen of the world with stops in Eugene, Oregon; Cuernavaca, Mexico; El Limón, Dominican Republic; Santiago, Chile; New York City; Richmond, Virginia; Miami, Florida; and probably some other places I'm forgetting right now. I have been working at the Center for Basque Studies for the past (almost) five years and have a chance to really make an imprint on the world of publishing about Basque topics in English, I love this little corner of the world.

I got into editing through my desire to be a writer, and I have to admit that for much of the past five years as I've focused on my work I haven't done much writing, but recently I've dusted off the old writing urge and have been spending my nights working on some writing projects. What I am working on right now is a autobiographical "novel" (it's a bit of a genre bender to be honest) provisionally entitled Moving On that deals with four journeys that chronicle the arc of a relationship, a pretty specific relationship to be sure, but also I think/hope the life of relationships together, especially between people who have a hard time being in one place for too long.

So this blog has a simple purpose, to write about these two things that I hold very near and dear to my heart. Entries will be wide-ranging dealing with writing projects, the creative process, book editing and marketing, Basque language classes (which I am in the first year of) and whatever else happens to strike my fancy. This blog will also be featured on my new personal website: www.danielmonteroreno.com and is also a complement to my other blog about adventures in life, La Pedaleada.

And finally, a word about the name. This blog is also dedicated to the cutest, best goat the world has ever seen, Bodie, who graced our life for a way too short of period, Bodie maite zatute.