Sep 09 2008
Nina’s thoughts on Waiting for Snow…
Carlos Eire was one of 14,000 Cuban children airlifted to the United States in 1962. At the time, neither the parents nor the children had any inkling that their separation would last as long as it did, or that Fidel Castro would remain in power for as long as he did. Carlos Eire went on to become a historian and an academic. He married an American, had three children, and lives in Connecticut. But the Elian Gonzalez affair in 2000, when Castro claimed that Elian should be returned to Cuba because all children should be with their parents, triggered the gush of memories that is this book.
Most of the book concerns Carlos’ memories from his ten years as a privileged younger son of a wealthy judge in pre-Castro Cuba; a few of them stem from his later years in America. All are written in rich prose. Eire has a flair for sharing the sensory details of his memories: the magical, colorful cloud of parrotfish in the sea, the taste of the Chinese man’s hotdogs, the sounds of religious items being smashed by the revolutionaries, the hot light of the Cuban sun…. He also develops the many characters in the book with affection and humor, such as his father, a fat man in baggy pants obsessed with collecting art and antiques whom Eire refers to as Louis XVI, since he apparently believed that he had been the French King in a former incarnation.
I was alternately appalled at some of the things that Carlos and his friends did, and that were done to them and others, and convulsed with laughter over their antics–sometimes simultaneously. It was really hard for me to imagine a childhood like that.
I have always been rather more sympathetic to the Revolution than to the Cuban-American population in Miami and elsewhere which has lobbied incessantly against normalization of relations with Cuba, a tiny country which could not possibly harm the United States. It seems that they do this out of pure spite, because it makes absolutely no sense. Even as he describes his life of privilege and luxury in pre-Revolutionary Cuba, Eire remembers the poor dark-skinned boys who dived for money in the sea. But I think that the poor, dark-skinned people of Cuba did not, for the most part, benefit much from the change in regime which enriched some and sent others into exile with two changes of clothes and one book.
I still think that the United States and Cuba should normalize their relations, but I have a lot more understanding of, and a bit more compassion for, the Cuban Americans who have thus far prevented it from happening. And I am really glad that I read this treasure of a memoir.
Originally published at Nina’s Reading Blog (http://nliakos.wordpress.com/2008/09/06/waiting-for-sn…of-a-cuban-boywaiting-for-snow-in-havana-confessions-of-a-cuban-boy/)
4 responses so far
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One thing that disappointed me a bit is that Eire never made any mention of the enormous strides Cuba made during its “difficult period” in the 1990’s after the collapse of the Soviet Union (when Russia stopped providing aid). With its isolation due to the US embargo and no more aid from the USSR, Cuba was forced to find ways to sustain development. In 2006, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) claimed that Cuba was the only country in the world to achieve sustainable development. The study credited “the high level of literacy, long life expectancy and low consumption of energy for this success.”
(See http://www.zeenews.com/articles.asp?rep=2&aid=331619&sid=ENV&ssid=26 ) Of course, this period was not the focus of Eire’s memoir, and mentioning it could confuse readers (sustainable development does not mean citizens enjoy freedom of speech, etc), but I think it would still be worthwhile to mention the steadfast determination and hard work of those left behind. Sadly, once relations between Cuba and the US are normalized, I’m afraid that this model of sustainable development will be lost when real estate is snapped up, corporations established and Western business ethics prevail.
Jane,
I am sure that you are right. When relations are finally normalized, the capitalists are going to wreak havoc.
Whenever there is a revolution, somebody suffers (the adage about having to break eggs to make an omelet seems apt here). In the case of Cuba, the ruling elite, of which Carlos Eire was a part, were the ones to suffer. If you are one of those who suffer, of course it is difficult to see the positive aspects of the change. Still, I think even Eire recognizes the humiliation and poverty which were borne by the poorer, darker people of Cuba before the Revolution; whether Castro really raised all those people up is another question.
Hi Ladies,
great post-blogpost reflections. There’s so much I don’t know. There’s so much more I want to know. All the historical aspects are also very important. Another book I have read way before this one is one by Alina, Castro’s daughter, and it was also impressive to visit her own perspective of Cuba and Cuban regime: http://www.ereader.com/servlet/mw?t=book&bi=6597&si=59
And Nina, you are absolutely right – the book is written with rich prose – I can’t think of a better way to describe it. It’s quite impressive how smells, landscapes, colours are described in Eire’s narrative.
I don’t like the way some words in my text are linked to advertisements, and I would like to know how to undo this!