The first in a trilogy of books about Chris Stewart and his wife starting a new life in the Andalucian mountains. No electricity, no water, no clue!! This is such a funny and heart-warming book that once you finish this one you will be very relieved to know you have two more volumes to go. One of the best books in the field of moving, and making a life, abroad.
Meet Chris Stewart, the eternal optimist. A man who flies to Spain, sees a peasant farm on the wrong side of the river and, with scarcely a second thought, hands over a cash deposit. And then finds he has acquired not just the farm, but the farmer, too, who has no intention of leaving. Not to mention the lack of running water, electricity or even a bridge.
It would be enough to send most people straight back home. But Chris and his wife Ana are made of stronger stuff - and besides, they have sunk all their savings into their farm, El Valero, and buying a flock of sheep. So there is no turning back. Life gets tough, but it also gets good.
Driving Over Lemons is that rare thing - a funny, insightful book that charms you from the first sun-lit page to the last. And one that makes running an Andalucian mountain farm seem like a half-decent career move. It has been a major bestseller both in Britain and Spain.
Exquisite ... in Driving Over Lemons the anecdote flourishes once more, Stewart’s briskly robust style and lack of pretension keep the book rolling along." Penelope Lively, The Daily Telegraph
"A humble and enchanting account…Chris Stewart is one of life’s bold originals." Christina Hardyment, The Independent
"A lyrical portrait of a couple integrating themselves into one of Europe’s most beautiful regions. Stewart’s writing conveys his amiability…and he has a particularly good ear for dialogue." Anthony Sattin, The Sunday Times
Author
About Chris Stewart
Chris Stewart shot to fame with Driving Over Lemons – Sort Of Books’ launch title in 1999. Funny, insightful and real, the book told the story of how he bought a Spanish peasant farm on the wrong side of the river, with its previous owner still resident. It became an international bestseller and together with its sequels – A Parrot in the Pepper Tree and The Almond BlossomAppreciation Society –has sold more than a million copies in the UK alone.
Chris prepared for life on his Spanish farm with jobs of doubtful relevance. He was the original drummer in Genesis (he played on the first album), then joined a circus, learnt how to shear sheep, went to China to write the Rough Guide, gained a pilot’s license in Los Angeles, and completed a course in French cooking. Three Ways to Capsize a Boat fills in his lost years as a yacht skipper in the Greek islands and dodging icebergs in the Atlantic. It is that rare thing: a book about sailing equally fun for people without a trace of sea legs.
Chris, his wife Ana and their daughter Chloë continue to live on their farm, with their numerous dogs, cats, chickens, sheep and misanthropic parrot.
