The Great American [Hardcover]

Alex Abella (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 5, 1997

Involved in a romance with Laura, a young revolutionary, Ohio Marine William Morgan, stationed in pre-Castro Havana, becomes caught up in the turbulent struggle against Batista, only to be faced with disillusionment, loss, and betrayal in the aftermath of Castro's triumph. 17,500 first printing.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Cuban-born Abella's (The Killing of the Saints, LJ 9/1/91) second novel is set amid the drama of the overthrow of Cuban dictator Batista and the rise of Castro. William Morgan, an AWOL marine, comes looking for fun with a Cuban pal but is quickly caught up in the fight to topple Batista. Love also plays a central role, as the idealistic Morgan is driven by his often conflicting loves for Laura and Irma. The novel makes several direct references to Pasternak's Dr. Zhivago, but this novel is not of the same caliber. Abella excels when he incorporates witchcraft scenes, Morgan's awkward use of Spanish, and the complexity of the Castro revolution, especially as these relate to U.S. interests. But while an action novel with a conscience is to be appreciated, Morgan's political-religious soul searching often intrudes. Look for this romantic novel possibly to resurface as a film.?Rebecca Sturm Kelm, Northern Kentucky Univ. Lib., Highland Heights
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

In 1957, big, blond, blue-eyed William Morgan, an AWOL U.S. Marine, is lured to Cuba by a military comrade turned revolutionary. Led more by lust than conscience, Morgan is soon bedding luscious Laura Fernandez and plotting to assassinate President Batista. Meanwhile--in a milieu in which all sides ally themselves based more on strategy than principle--the CIA is tracking Morgan, and Batista's repressive police force is pressuring him for reports of Fernandez family conspiracies. When the assassination attempt fails and Laura is left for dead, Morgan takes to the hills, where he meets Che Guevara, falls in love with American preacher Irma O'Farrell, and joins forces supporting Fidel Castro. A fearless fighter and skilled killer, Morgan becomes a hero of the revolution, betrays the woman of his heart, and follows his conscience when conditions fail to improve under Castro. By a Cuban-born writer, a heartfelt if flawed fictionalized account of his country's travails. Michele Leber

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 445 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; 1ST edition (March 5, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684814277
• ISBN-13: 978-0684814278
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,577,713 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A compelling story of a heroic spirit and a truth seeker., July 13, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Great American (Hardcover)

As a Cuban born after the revolution I was taught many lies in Cuban schools as to the events that transpire during those years of the revolution. My parents told me otherwise, they said the truth to me about those events that transpire so long ago. Mr. Abella's recounting,though fictionalized, are as true as what my parents and friends narrated to me.

This book is an educational tool for those that wish to know what turmoils Cubans(Communist or not) went through during that period. The hero, William Morgan, a real life ex-marine, through the eyes of a naive foreigner, later becomes a true Cuban leader whose desire is to rid Cuba of an oppressor. In the end, he realizes that a worse oppressor has arrived, and he tries to correct a wrong.

Being a Cuban-American himself Alex can truly relate to the people in the story, the Cuban personality comes alive in this story. A must read for those who wish to know about my people and their struggle for a Cuba Libre.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Commandante Morgan: Adventurer or Great American?, May 9, 2001

By 

Evangaline (Nepean, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Great American: A Novel (Paperback)

Like any developing nation whose history is partly shaped by the secret agencies of more powerful countries, the history of Cuba, from the controversial sinking of the USS Maine onward, is more myth than historical fact. It is therefore fitting that Alex Abella should use fiction as a means of chronicling this shadowy episode of Cuban history leading up to and immediately following the Cuban Revolution. With it, he probably reveals more about the deeply buried facts than any history text. He also brings it to life with vivid images -from the grotesque terror of Batista's police to a bizarre scene in which the dictator is being scorned by Chango, a Santeria god, during a ceremony in the basement of the Presidential Palace. At times Abella can be a little too whimsical as when a visiting American senator called John F. Kennedy inadvertently gets his head in the way of the assassin's crosshairs during an attempt on Batista, thus foiling a better moment to get rid of the tyrant and might not have saddled Cuba with yet another one. Of course, most Cuban-Americans are prepared to blame the Kennedys for every misfortune short of hurricane season. Elsewhere, though, the format allows for some interesting historical theses to be advanced. This includes the possiblity of a Soviet mole within the C.I.A. thus compromising its ambitious agenda to back all the players on the premise that they would then control the entire chess board. Indeed it is historical fact that the American mission underwent a thorough changing of the guard about a year before the Revolution, documented evidence reflecting suspicions of some sort. It does explain why the Soviets who had an apparent absence from the scene in the early stages of the game wound up with such important political prize. As a rule these things don't just happen. True or not, this is both an entertaining and provocative read from a very talented writer.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Commandante Morgan: Adventurer or Great American?, May 9, 2001

By 

Evangaline (Nepean, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Great American: A Novel (Paperback)

Like any developing nation whose history is partly shaped by the secret agencies of more powerful countries, the history of Cuba, from the controversial sinking of the USS Maine onward, is more myth than historical fact. It is therefore fitting that Alex Abella should use fiction as a means of chronicling this shadowy episode of Cuban history leading up to and immediately following the Cuban Revolution. With it, he probably reveals more about the deeply buried facts than any history text. He also brings it to life with vivid images -from the grotesque terror of Batista's police to a bizarre scene in which the dictator is being scorned by Chango, a Santeria god, during a ceremony in the basement of the Presidential Palace. At times Abella can be a little too whimsical as when a visiting American senator called John F. Kennedy inadvertently gets his head in the way of the assassin's crosshairs during an attempt on Batista, thus foiling a better moment to get rid of the tyrant and might not have saddled Cuba with yet another one. Of course, most Cuban-Americans are prepared to blame the Kennedys for every misfortune short of hurricane season. Elsewhere, though, the format allows for some interesting historical theses to be advanced. This includes the possiblity of a Soviet mole within the C.I.A. thus compromising its ambitious agenda to back all the players on the premise that they would then control the entire chess board. Indeed it is historical fact that the American mission underwent a thorough changing of the guard about a year before the Revolution, documented evidence reflecting suspicions of some sort. It does explain why the Soviets who had an apparent absence from the scene in the early stages of the game wound up with such important political prize. As a rule these things don't just happen. True or not, this is both an entertaining and provocative read from a very talented writer.