A study of one man and a collective biography of the working class into
which he was born. The story of José Peirats shows the human foundations of
Spanish anarchism, the ties of friendship and community that cemented the
largest anti-authoritarian movement in the world. “In his biography of
Pierats—anarchist, autodidact, brick maker and historian—Chris Ealham
presents us with an unsettling portrayal of that most challenging and
complex organization, the CNT-FAI, both in its greatest moments and in the
agony and brutality of its exile. Commanding the narrative throughout,
though, is Peirats. José Peirats both helped make history as a militant
anarchist, sometimes with gun in hand, and wrote some of the most detailed
and determinedly impartial history our movement has ever produced. It is a
matter of real satisfaction to know that this exemplary militant and
scholar has the biography he deserves.”—Barry Pateman, archivist and author
with the Kate Sharpley Library