The Last House Before the Sea
One Year on the Ebro Delta
Restless Books · Print & ebook · November 21, 2025
A year spent at the precipice of severe climate change in oceanfront Spain.
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- Who it’s for
- Gabi Martínez spends a year on Buda, tracing island life alongside a changing climate.
- Themes
- Climate change, Rising sea levels, Island community and tradition
- Pacing
- Reflective
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For younger readers: Anzuelo, The Tear Collector, When Water Flows
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Start with this bookAbout this book
A year spent at the precipice of severe climate change in oceanfront Spain. The Last House Before the Sea is the magnificent result of a year lived on the island of Buda, contemplating the passing of the seasons, the marshes, the seabirds, and a relentless horizon. In its pages, Gabi Martínez stitches scenes of the natural world alongside the day-to-day lives of this unique island's residents, many of whom have called it home for generations.
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But something disrupts the slow rhythms of eel fishing, rice farming, and the Ebro River's flow to the coast. Something is shifting. As climate change tilts the scales of a fragile coexistence, and rising sea levels threaten to swallow their homes, the island's locals must reconcile their past and future—both beholden to a region that grows more endangered with each passing day.
Buda Through Seasons
Gabi Martínez spends a year on Buda, tracing island life alongside a changing climate.
Come here for
- The island of Buda through its seasons, marshes, and seabirds
- Eel fishing, rice farming, and the Ebro River’s route to the coast
Expect
- Scenes of the natural world alongside residents’ day-to-day lives
- Rising seas threatening homes and long-standing island traditions
Where it sits
| Climate Change | 62% |
|---|---|
| Coasts & Shorelines | 56% |
| Nature Writing | 29% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Conservation
- Coasts & Shorelines
- Travel Writing
- Authors
- Gabi Martínez
- Publisher
- Restless Books
- Published
- November 21, 2025
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Theme
- Climate change · Rising sea levels · Island community and tradition
- Reading lane
- Conservation