Che: A Memoir [Paperback]

Fidel Castro (Author), David Deutschmann (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2005

In a new, expanded edition of a best-selling Ocean classic, Castro describes a historic political partnership that changed the face of Cuba and Latin America. He vividly portrays Che—the man, the revolutionary, and the thinker—recounting in detail his last days with Che in Cuba, giving a remarkably frank assessment of the Bolivian mission.

Fidel Castro, in an unusually gentle, quite emotional mood, remarks, “For me it has been hard to accept the idea that Che is dead. I have dreamed of him often, that I spoke with him, that he was alive . . .” Includes Castro’s speech on the return of Che’s remains to Cuba in 1997.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Spanish --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

· Fidel Castro went into exile on his release from prison after initiating an armed attack against the Batista dictatorship. One night in Mexico he met a young Argentine doctor Ernesto Guevara. They talked until dawn, sharing their ideas and dreams, when "Che" agreed to join the expedition back to Cuba to restore popular rule. The rest is history David Deutschmann is an Australian author whose recent books include the anthologies Fidel Castro Reader (2004) and Che Guevara Reader (2003).

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: Ocean Press; 2nd edition (October 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 192088825X
• ISBN-13: 978-1920888251
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #386,217 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #20 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( G ) > Guevara, Che
  • #31 in Books > History > Americas > South America > Bolivia

More About the Author

Fidel Castro Ruz was born in Birán, in the former province of Oriente, on August 13, 1926. Born into a well-off landowning family, he received his primary education in a rural school, later attended private Jesuit schools in Santiago de Cuba and Havana, and graduated from law school at the University of Havana (described in My Early Years and Fidel and Religion). As a student, he volunteered for an armed expedition against the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic and was in Colombia to help organize a Latin American anti-imperialist student congress when the April 1948 popular uprising occurred in Bogotá. After Fulgencio Batista's 1952 coup, Fidel Castro organized and led an unsuccessful attack on the Moncada army garrison in Santiago de Cuba on July 26, 1953. While in prison, Fidel Castro edited his defense speech from the trial into the pamphlet History Will Absolve Me, which was distributed in tens of thousands of copies and became the program of what was to become the revolutionary July 26 Movement. Originally sentenced to 15 years, he and his comrades were released from prison 22 months later, in May 1955, as a result of a growing public campaign. Exiled to Mexico, he organized a guerrilla expedition to Cuba to launch a guerrilla movement to overthrow Batista. Arriving aboard the cabin cruiser Granma, for the next two years, Fidel Castro led the Rebel Army. On January 1, 1959, Batista fled Cuba. In response to a call by Fidel, hundreds of thousands of Cubans launched an insurrectionary general strike that ensured the victory of the revolution. Fidel Castro arrived triumphantly in Havana on January 8 as commander-in-chief of Cuba's victorious Rebel Army. On February 13, 1959, he was named prime minister, a position he held until December 1976, when he became president of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers. One of history's greatest orators, for nearly five decades, Fidel Castro has been an outspoken advocate for the rights of Third World and other oppressed peoples at international forums such as the Movement of Nonaligned Countries and the United Nations. A selection of his famous speeches was published in Fidel Castro Reader. On July 31, 2006, shortly before his 80th birthday, Fidel Castro handed over all his positions in the Cuban government to his brother Raúl. "Fidel's devotion to the word is almost magical." -- Gabriel García Márquez "Fidel is the leader of one of the smallest countries in the world, but he has helped to shape the destinies of millions of people across the globe." --Angela Davis "Fidel Castro is a man of the masses& The Cuban revolution has been a source of inspiration to all freedom-loving people." --Nelson Mandela "Fidel's is a singing and dancing intellect& In Fidel this passion is expressed in his priestly dedication to revolution." --Alice Walker

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not what it may seem, September 17, 2001

By 

"ericmccantona" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Che: A Memoir by Fidel Castro (Paperback)

Yes, Old Fidel did write this. No, he didn't sit down at his word processor and bash it out over a quiet weekend. It is a collection of Fidel's speeches, writings and interviews about Che. Some of them are very interesting. Some of them go on and on and on. This bloke can talk! It is hardly an intimate portrait, it doesn't reveal anything new, but it is still a worthwhile read - if only to highlight the relationship between Che and Fidel and the circumstances surrounding Che's disappearance from Cuba.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A classic political memoir and biography of revolutionary and intellectual Che Guevara, August 6, 2006

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Che: A Memoir (Paperback)

Now in a new edition which includes Fidel Castro's speech on the return of Che's remains to Cuba 30 years after his assassination in Bolivia in 1967, Che: A Memoir By Fidel Castro is a classic political memoir and biography of revolutionary and intellectual Che Guevara. Che: A Memoir By Fidel Castro is not structured like a standard biography; chapters jump back and forth through time, reflecting on key events in Che's political life, his implacable struggle for transformation, his martyrdom, and his legacy. An inset section of black-and-white photographic plates round out this unique appraisal of a complex revolutionary figure (whose impact continues to inspire men and woman to political resistance and activism long after his own death), as seen through the eyes of a national leader who admires him. Students of Che's live and work would be well advised to visit the Ocean Press website for a complete listing of all their Che Guevara related titles.

6 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inciteful..., December 18, 2000

By 

John McCormack (Mahopac, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Che: A Memoir by Fidel Castro (Paperback)

An intense and interesting look into Cuba's political sphere and also at Castro himself. Che Guevara is brought down from myth status and shown in a very human light. If only Che was still around...I know he would've solved that whole Elian Gonzalez episode...