Customer Reviews

El Caso CEA: Intelectuales e Inquisidores en Cuba. ¿Perestroika en la Isla? (Coleccion Cuba y sus Jueces) (Spanish Edition)

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An absolute must for anyone studying Cuba or communism in general. This book provides a fascinating account of the unknown secret struggles within Cuba's political élites. Thanks to classified documents he was able to obtain, this author - a young and promising Oxford and Cambridge graduate - puts us into the picture of the delicate and intricate power games at the regime's peaks. Thrilling throughout all its pages, and very easy to read.

This is of course an academic book, filled with information and data from secret documents which the author managed to obtain from unknown sources. It offers an analysis of the events it describes, as well as a lot of reflexions and interpretations. Yet, at the same time this is a 'human story', of women and men (perhaps special women and men, but still human beings) in today's Cuba. The book tells of their struggle in Castro's Cuba, to achieve or to maintain their own little niches of freedom within the regime. The book is not only interesting, but also fascinating to read, and makes excellent reading for all.

This book uncovers the evil machineries of Castro's repressive apparatus. As it unveils the full real story of a 1996 purge against Cuba's top academics, it brings us back to the times of Stalinist terror - but in our century, and in the Western Hemisphere ! The author has managed to get hold of confidential (or secret ?) documents, which no other scholar had been able to acquire. The book offers an excellent and valid academic approach, but it is at the same time a "human story", it is written in a style similar to a novel even though - unfortunately - it is pure reality. It tells the story of human beings living their everyday lives in Castro's Cuba, who have suffered this horrible tragedy, even leading to the death of one of them. It will be pleasant and enjoyable for the average reader, even if she/he is not so informed about the subject.

This is a truly great book. By providing a detailed account of the major 'purge' of Cuba's intellectuals in the 1990s, the author examines and analyses the delicate and intricate relations between the apparatus and the island's renowned intelligentsia. Some issues (often taboo even for Western academics) are approached very directly and very balancedly, such as the blurred border-lines between research and espionage, and the relations between genuine intellectuals and Cuba's repressive apparatus - indeed, the same apparatus that occasionally purges them. The arguments contained in this book derive from genuine evidence of crucial importance, namely those would-be classified documents, which somehow leaked out of Cuba in 1998 and were published by the author, causing great embarrassment by the Cuban Government, and an uproar among intellectuals, artists and others. Over 100 pages of those documents are contained in the book itself. Altogether, this is excellent reading. It is extremely central to the study and knowledge of today's Cuba.

Even now, almost five years after the tragic purge of 1996 against the academics of the CEA (Centro de Estudios sobre América), the relevance of this book is paramount. To this day, this collection of highly sensitive documents, together with the author's able reconstruction of facts and his analysis, remains one of the best sources to understand intra-élite conflicts in contemporary Cuba. Which is, in turn, the most likely basis for future change towards democracy in the communist island. Every single document and piece of information in this book should be carefully scrutinized, in any attempt to forecast possible 'openings' towards a democratic transition 'from within' the apparatus.

Aún sin conocer mucho o casi nada sobre el tema de Cuba, encontré absolutamente fascinante este libro. Creo que es la primera vez que yo haya leído un libro de unas 250 páginas en dos días ! Es una historia fascinante, densa y llena de eventos y emociones. Aún dejando de un lado lo académico que tiene este libro, es un libro que nos mete en La Habana de 1996, haciendo sentir el lector como si éste estuviese presente. La historia expuesta en este libro es una excelente novela, pero - lamentablemente - no podemos olvidar que se trató de una triste realidad.

In this book, Maurizio Giuliano has been able to collect material which may otherwise have been destroyed, on the secret tensions and divergencies among Cuba's political élites. It is the first time that this type of documents are published, enabling scholars and others to know more on this delicate issue. The stories of repression against Cuba's dissidents are no news, but the repression and internal purges within the élites are something very different, which can indeed tell us a lot about the prospects for change in Cuba 'from within'. This book therefore does a marvelous job. It constitutes an extremely valuable source, as well as fascinating reading with extremely astute intepretations and observations.

I don't know much about Cuba, but this book has set me straight. Make no mistake. This is not just an academic book, or not just one more journalistic account of today's Cuba. It is not about a specific issue or a specific time for Cuba. This book is indeed ABOUT CUBA. While it narrates the story of a particular group of intellectuals living in Castro's Cuba, it exposes a lot about the system: contradictions, paradoxes... It says so much about Cuban life in general, rich with anecdotes, reflections and so much more. And above all, the prose is great and it makes excellent reading. By all means, this is THE book about Cuba !

I personally know very little about Cuba, other than it is the last communist stronghold in the Western Hemisphere. I read bits and pieces from academic books, but did not get much insight from them, let alone any enjoyment. When someone suggested this book I was skeptical. Instead, this book, while telling one specific story (of a sttrongly political nature) that happened in Cuba, offers so much information and insights into Cuba's life - political, cultural, economic and social. I read it all in one go, found it extremely interesting and stimulating, and really really enjoyable. I would recommend it without reservations to anyone with an interest in Cuba, who would like to read a "real" Cuba story, filled with lots of academic analysis, but also being a piece of outstanding journalism and thus very very easy and pleasant to read.

Con gran maestría y excelente prosa, el autor de este libro nos coloca en la Cuba de hoy, justo al medio de un drama humano vivido por fieles miembros del aparato castrista. Un drama, justamente, que nace de esa fieldad y que termina por comprometerla. Es una de las tantas historias de contradicciones y tensiones de la Cuba de hoy, que ocurren en los medios más sencillos como en la familia o el lugar de trabajo, así como entre intelectuales o personalidades políticas. Tantas batallas llevadas a cabo por valiosos cubanos, a veces victotiosas y a veces no tan victoriosas, que en cualquier caso nos demuestran la desesperada tentativa de los cubanos de seguir en el camino hacia la democracia.