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mg_in_md_'s review
3.0
Quirky and entertaining, this book follows two aging Cuban men whose lives were shaped by the Cuban Revolution: an exile and the leader. The story centers around Goyo Herrera, an octogenarian living in exile in Miami, as he plots revenge against Cuba's aging dictator, El Comandante. The chapters go back and forth between the lives of Goyo and El Comandante and are interspersed with quotes from various people whose lives have been impacted by the revolution. Satirical in tone, the book captures the emotions and realities of the two Cubas, and the reader wonders which aging senior citizen will emerge victorious in the end.
em_harring's review against another edition
3.0
Not my favorite Garcia novel. I thought the juxtaposition between the "tyrant" and the exile was good, but I didn't care for either of their voices. I prefer it when Garcia writes from women's perspectives. I'd still recommend this for those who read a lot of Latina/o literature, because it does offer a great look into Cuba as its own character.
sylda's review
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I at no point get the impression that the author wants the reader to like the two main characters, but I still don't like reading about fictional characters I don't like.
ericgaryanderson's review
5.0
Garcia is always great fun, but I never expected to see her shuttle a narrative back and forth between 80-something Fidel Castro ("the tyrant") and an 80-something Cuban exile gent who lives in Florida and wants nothing more than to avenge the tyrant. I read for the luminous writing and the southern/Caribbean atmospherics, but I also read for the plot. This could be Garcia's first page-turner.
senorita_ale's review
1.0
Definitely not on the same level as Dreaming in Cuban. I had to force myself to finish it.
dannafs's review
3.0
Favorite quotes:
"But if Goyo had learned anything in his eighty-six years, it was that pain alone didn't kill a man" (10).
"Ay, he would gladly give up everything he owned--his oceanfront condo on Key Biscayne, his collapsing brownstone off Second Avenue, every last cent of his considerable fortune, even the weekly rendezvous with the shapely bank teller Vilma Espin, who was a magician of hand-mouth coordination and kept him in fighting form since his wife of fifty-nine years had died unexpectedly last New Year's Eve--for the privilege of killing his nemesis" (10).
"But you know what they say: cartels = organized crime; government = disorganized crime" (89).
"But if Goyo had learned anything in his eighty-six years, it was that pain alone didn't kill a man" (10).
"Ay, he would gladly give up everything he owned--his oceanfront condo on Key Biscayne, his collapsing brownstone off Second Avenue, every last cent of his considerable fortune, even the weekly rendezvous with the shapely bank teller Vilma Espin, who was a magician of hand-mouth coordination and kept him in fighting form since his wife of fifty-nine years had died unexpectedly last New Year's Eve--for the privilege of killing his nemesis" (10).
"But you know what they say: cartels = organized crime; government = disorganized crime" (89).