The White Island

Description

The extraordinary history of the Mediterranean's capital of hedonism - Ibiza Received wisdom has it that Ibiza is an island of Union Jack-shorted beerboys singing 'Here we go, here we go, here we go' on their way to a 24-hour rave. But the reality of the island today is very different. It is, and always has been, a magnet for hedonists, but la Isla Blanca is actually a sophisticated, cosmopolitan island of enormous natural beauty - far more Jade Jagger than Jordan. The island's history reads like a history of pleasure itself. The Carthaginians established a cult there to Tanit, their goddess of sex, around 650 BC and named the Island after Bez, their god of dance. Roman centurions in need of a bit of down time between campaigns would go to Ibiza to get their kicks. And over the centuries virtually every culture around the Mediterranean has used the island either as a playground or as a dump for the kind of people who didn't quite fit in back home, but who you'd probably quite like to meet at a party. Stephen Armstrong tells for the first time the fascinating history of this fantasy island. It is a story of invasions and migrations, of artists and conmen, of drop outs and love-ins. This narrative is framed by Stephen's highly entertaining experiences during one long, golden summer on Ibiza, an island where anything can happen - and it usually does.

Stephen Armstrong writes for The Sunday Times, Time Out, Wallpaper* and Men's Health. He also contributes to Radio 4's Front Row whenever they let him. In the past he has, like all young men, wanted to be a pilot, played in a band and thought about building bridges in Third World villages. He has also promoted one or two genuinely disastrous club nights. This is his first book.

'Lively, well-researched ramble through the island's frenetic history' * Time Out * 'An honest and amiable account of the oddball history of this little land of extraordinary sunsets' * Daily Telegraph * 'A history of the ultimate party island which shows that the hedonists who flock there haven't always been the Union Jack-shorted variety' * Glamour * 'Essential Summer reading. Keenly observed and sprinkled with a wealth of delicious titbits' * Q *