This book is excellent--I thought it was a very complete and balanced treatment of bullfighting traditions and practices, and all couched in great discussions of Spanish culture, Lorca, travel tidbits, etc.

Kennedy is from Scotland and takes the assignment to write about bullfighting as her life has sunk to new lows, and though she expects to hate the corrida, she doesn't. Instead, she explores the place of the corrida throughout Spanish history (and up to today), with clear, frank discussions of some of the brutal practices balanced out by descriptions of the beauty of the pageant. I don't think this book is going to turn aficionados into anti-corrida activists (or vice versa), but it doesn't try to, either. I HIGHLY recommend it--and it's only about 150 pages long, too!