Dear All,
It is with a great sense of pride, admiration, awe and (I have to admit) a little jealousy that I call your attention to my brother Enrique's second book, "90 Miles to Havana." "Raining Sardines," his first book, published in 2007, earned a prestigious "America's Award," for young adult fiction based in Latin America.
"90 Miles to Havana," is Enrique's autobiographical account of his and his two older brother's experiences after being sent to a refugee camp in the US by our parents to escape Castro's totalitarian dictatorship.
In "90 Miles to Havana," Enrique does a masterful job of capturing the essence of what the three brothers went through and uses his vivid imagination and descriptive talent to make the characters come alive and add dimension to the events. His characterization of my brother, Fernando, ("Gordo") and I, ("Alquilino") and our relationship, is right on the money.
Speaking as an older brother who, according to the Laws of Birth Order, was responsible for "tormenting" my younger siblings, I can proudly claim that in some small way I helped shape their personality. Although Enrique is a prize winning, and highly regarded portrait painter, and engaging lecturer in the fine arts, the publication of "90 Miles to Havana" and "Raining Sardines," confirmed what I have known for many years, he is, above all, a spellbinding storyteller.
Anyway, enough fawning put down whatever Stieg Larsson novel you may be reading at the moment and pick up "90 Miles to Havana". You'll be glad you did. Right from the very first page you'll be enthralled, swept into a story of political upheaval, sibling rivalry, good vs. evil, greed, corruption, passionate romance, all fueled by the nostril flaring hot Latin tempers of the book's central characters, Julian, el "Gordo" and me, "Alquilino."
Seriously pick up the book, you will not be able to put it down. Happy reading
See you soon.
--Anibal/Alquilino
Enrique Flores-Galbis
hflores@nyc.rr.com
