From beyond the Graves

HE spent half his life living on the island of Mallorca and even wrote some of his stories in Spanish.

Now in recognition of this great expat, a publisher has brought out the first complete collection of shorter works by Robert Graves in Spanish.

In his autobiographical tales, the historian, essayist, poet and short-story writer captures his experiences as a soldier in World War I, and his lengthy life as an expat in Mallorca.

Among the new collection published by RBA – mostly written in the 1950s and early 1960s – are around 12 stories that have never before been published in Spanish.

“The 50 or so short stories allow us to get to know him better, and also shed light on his relationship with Spain,” explained his daughter Lucía Graves, who translated the collection.

Best known for his work I Claudius, the British writer lived in Mallorca in the 1930s with his wife, the poet Laura Riding, returning at the end of World War II and remaining there until his death in 1985.