Customer Reviews

Cuban, That's All!An Exile in Three Acts: Candid Voices of a Spanglish Existence

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Shame on you for making me, my wife, my daughter and my mother cry. You should be ashamed of yourself for writing such a truthful, stunning portrayal of the Cuban people. How dare you expose our flaws and virtues by way of universal voices whose words ring so true? How dare you tell the world that we are proud people although many of us have never set foot on the island (my daughter and wife included)? And most of all, shame on you for not writing this sooner so we could all celebrate the magic and wonder we all feel in our indescribable lives as 'cubanoholics'. Phenomenal prose, absolutely breathtaking and emotional.

My father was born in Indiana and his parents relocated to Cuba when he was 4 years old. He was raised in Cuba as his father was an executive for Sears. My father left Cuba at the age of 19 and I was born in the states about five years later. I was raised in a 'cuban' american household so I can relate to so many of these stories. I laughed with Mayflower Mary and I cried (sobbed is more like it) with The Southern Way. I only wish my father were here to read William's story because in so many ways it is his story and that of my family. Thank you for remembering all Cubans, even those like me who are not 'pure' breds.

Paro todo aquel nacido Cubano y criado en este gran pais, estas historias son para ti. Como todos los lectores, rei, llore y me envolvi en los recuerdos de mi niñez. Gracias al autor por darme un recorrido tan lindo por mi pasado. Se lo recomiendo a todos que lean Español o ingles. Great book. If you are second, third generation Cuban you need to read this.

If you don't cry when you read about the man eating his meal, without rice, in prison. And his promise to eat nothing but white rice when he is reunited with his family for the next Christmas dinner, then you are a stronger person than I am, or you are a cold heartless non-Cuban! Viva Cuba Carajo!

If you were born Cuban and raised in the United States this is your story...this is my story...this is their story. I've heard it live and now I've read the book. Great job. Superb. Can't wait for more!

From Cuban, That's All - I Know Because I'm Cuban...

So here I am trying to get this thing finished. I've committed to doing a reading in front of small audience in a little over a month. I've asked my wife and two of my dearest friends to participate in this experiment by lending me their voices to portray the ones I have created. You get it, right? Claro que si. I knew you would.

We are going to do a test run see what moves the audience. Who will embrace this work and what words will they enjoy more? I don't know if this is considered a play, an ensemble piece or a series of monologues...I know it needs to be heard and it needs to be heard by you. I know that I have put these individual's words on the page and they literally have taken a life of their own. I don't know where this will go, but I know it had to be written. Why? Because I'm Cuban.

I have time traveled from 1959 to the present and what a journey it has been for me. I have laughed and cried through it all and I have learned so much about the Cuban experience. I have sat at the computer and the voices have come to me and through my fingers their words have flown and covered the page.

I had such trouble finding one language for these folks that from my confusion the subtitle, Candid Voices of a Spanglish Existence, evolved. Spanglish is, for most of us second and third generation Cuban Americans, our primary language. Its fluency is only achieved in the direct battle between two broken vocabulary parallel universes, which simply have to coexist in the solar system of Cuban minds, hearts and tongues. Unless you've had to explain your report card to your parents or written your own absence notes for grammar school, you will not understand the whole concept behind Spanglish. The best thing about Spanglish is that rules of grammar, spelling and especially subject/verb agreement are all but non-existent. The other great thing about Spanglish is that it makes Spanish so much easier to understand.

Hopefully, you will understand these voices whose truth, to me, is so visible and evident. Believe me, I know these people for they have been a part of my life for a very long time. Their stories represent unspoken truths hidden behind humor and sorrow. Their stories are Cuban stories. I know you will enjoy this journey. Without any further fanfare, the curtain goes up as I give you, Cuban, That's All!

See you after the show.

I had to read this book after my cousin saw the reading in person and raved about it. As still another Cubanoholic, I was up until 3 in the morning reading Mr. Hernandez's work. Read one page, where the man in prison is lamenting about a corrupt revolution that separates him from his beloved daughter and grandchildren, and the tears flow freely; read another page, about the Cuban teenager coming up with words like "typear", and you laugh at the sweet memories of a conversation that must have gone on in more households than just your own! People who grew up in the 60s and 70s will especially love this book, but the next generations need to read it, too. Quite simply, it's an affectionate, proud, beautiful history and testament. This book is Cuban, outstanding - that's all!

As I was reading, jumping from Spanish to English, I kept thinking of my mother and how much she would have enjoyed these monologues. So many reminded me of her and of my childhood as a Pedro Pan child. Thank you for helping me relive my childhood and for helping me take a nostalgic trip through my Cuban upbringing.

As a Cuban I found myself laughing out loud at all the comments and stories detailed in this wonderful book. What was discussed was definately realistic. The author Juan does a great job in showing the different eras and what truly happened during that time period....he uses humor and creativity to tell the story. I applaud Mr. Hernandez.

I visited Cuba a couple of years ago and have read several books on the theme. I bought this because it sounded like one I would like. It probably would be - except for one thing - I am not fluent in Spanish! I received the book from Amazon and took it on vacation and was so disappointed when I opened it and discovered it was 1/3 in Spanish! Why didn't the Amazon description mention that??? My high school Spanish just didn't cover the idioms necessary to enjoy this book. I also didn't think it needed to be printed in such large type since I was planning to read rather than perform the book.