Lonely Planet Enduring Cuba

Rating:
Summary: The real thing
Review: I agree with ginnymurphy that this is one of the very best books about Cuba and how the state is now that I've ever read. There's no propaganda (at least, that I could discern) here. Zoe Bran uses her investigative skills (in figuring out & explaining the lack of toilet seats, for example) and also her intense yet sensitive journalistic skills in interviewing (in Spanish) so many average Cubans, as well as several diplomats and Cuban officials, to get an all-around perspective of the situation there. She's very good at what she does, and she also sounds like the kind of person I'd like to be with on a visit to Cuba, a place that fascinates us norteamericanos, whether we admit it or not.

Rating:
Summary: Objective, informative and EXCELLENT in all respects
Review: I agree with ginnymurphy that this is one of the very best books about Cuba and how the state is now that I've ever read. There's no propaganda (at least, that I could discern) here. Zoe Bran uses her investigative skills (in figuring out & explaining the lack of toilet seats, for example) and also her intense yet sensitive journalistic skills in interviewing (in Spanish) so many average Cubans, as well as several diplomats and Cuban officials, to get an all-around perspective of the situation there. She's very good at what she does, and she also sounds like the kind of person I'd like to be with on a visit to Cuba, a place that fascinates us norteamericanos, whether we admit it or not.

Rating:
Summary: A very sensitive and observant view of today's Cuba
Review: Ms. Bran's book so closely mirrors my own impressions and experiences in visiting Cuba with a natural history tour group in early 2001 that it is spellbinding. Her objectivity and the breadth of her experiences provide a reader with a more than reasonable facsimile for an actual visit to the island. The many small details that she notes are particularly noteworthy for a past traveler to Cuba: the lack of toilet seats, the rationing of soap and toilet paper, the constant search for food by the populace,the CDR painted on the cement residential buildings, the Chocolate Factory outside Baracoa, the intimate social activities along the Malecon, the political slogans, the presence of Che Guevara today, the furtive conversations, the marvellous music, the wonderful hopeful spirit of the population. If you read just one book about the current social experience in Cuba today, run to enjoy Enduring Cuba. I couldn't put it down!

Rating:
Summary: The real thing
Review: This is one of the very few really good books on Cuba available right now, mostly because it's much much, more than just a travel book. Unlike many so-called experiences of the island, Bran's book doesn't sentimentalise but gives the real experience of someone visiting Cuba with a clear, unbiased eye. There's history here and personal experience and a whole lot of great description of people and places. Bran's range of knowledge is considerable and I particularly liked her Graham Greene-style meetings with the foreign correspondent who got thrown out of the country because he upset Castro by constantly referring to his age! I'd definitely recommend this to anyone wanting to know more about Cuba and what's it's really like in the dying days of a communist state.