Jul 07, 2008 such is the case with rachel kushners first novel, telex from cuba, set in the waning years of the americanowned united fruit company in cuba. He moved from havana, cuba to miami, florida when he was 7. The 10 books listed here barely scratch the surface, but will give you a solid foundation for your visit to this beautiful island nation. It feels like eires book picks up where telex ended. He has published a number of shortstory collections and literary essays but international fame came with the havana quartet, all. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading telex from cuba. Telex from cuba, a finalist for the national book award. The book was not a page turner for me, but worth the reading. The novel follows a group of angloexpatriates living in cuba during the cuban revolution and was loosely based on kushner s mothers experience growing up in cuba on territory occupied by the united fruit company. It should be no surprise that rachel kushners debut novel richly portrays the life of corporate americans who lived high and mighty in cuba just before the crush of castros revolution.
Apr 03, 2014 the book was not a page turner for me, but worth the reading. Telex from cuba is an engrossing novel of the years leading up to castros revolution, told from the point of view of the american children. Mar 04, 2009 leonardo padura was born in 1955 in havana and lives in cuba. Telex from cuba, was a finalist for the national book award, covers an enormous amount of geographic and historical. Risk and rebellion polish telex from cuba, by literary. But its different from so many of the other books written on this topic because this story is not so much about the bigger picture of politics and revolution but the little and hitherto untold story of the children who grew up in cuba on american. Early in the beautiful, biting novel telex from cuba, a united fruit co. Telex from cuba is a fictional portrait of 1950s, precastro cuba. The novel follows a group of angloexpatriates living in cuba during the cuban revolution and was loosely based on kushners mothers experience growing up in cuba on territory occupied by the united fruit company. Telex from cuba is the 2008 debut novel of writer rachel kushner.
Rachel kushners debut novel, telex from cuba, was a finalist for the 2008 national book award and the dayton literary peace prize, winner of the california book award, and a new york times bestseller and notable book. No small feat simply to have ones name printed next to those towering figures. The pain of being separated from her parents as a child is revisited when maria perez receives a telex message from cuba. Telex takes us to 1950s cuba and into the lives of real and imaginary characters. Still, in the grand scheme of things, none of those are bookruining flaws. Apr 15, 2016 cuba is at a turning point in its history, and for a short time will be that rarity. Jul 11, 2008 two debut novels, missy by chris hannan and telex from cuba by rachel kushner, infuse historical fiction with a new vitality, as they bring to life, respectively, a druggedup bad girl of the. In the early 1950s, a doll called scribbles shook up the toy industry. Telex from cuba is set, for the most part, in oriente province during the six years prior to castros overthrow of batista. Such is the case with rachel kushners first novel, telex from cuba, set in the waning years of the americanowned united fruit company in cuba.
Pages in category cuba in fiction the following 3 pages are in this category, out of 3 total. Kushners lush, detailed descriptions of the cuban landscapenatural, political, and socialreveal her. Parra, time out new york in the passages set among the american expatriates, kushner displays a keen sense of the detail that reveals human nature. She has also been an editor at the acclaimed magazine bomb and the journal soft targets, and has published frequently in. Given the recent cuba headlines, kushners tale, passionately told and intensively researched, couldnt have come at a more opportune time. With kesia elwin, sofia checchi, milton herdoiza, samantha weissert. With its sharp detail and precisely drawn characters, telex from cuba offers a compelling look at a paradise corrupted. Telex from cuba by rachel kushner finalist for the national book award for fiction the debut novel by new york times bestselling author rachel kushner, called. Rachel kushners first novel is a work of great care and research, directed at recreating a place that history has erased from the map. Jul 05, 2015 it would have made for an easier read if shed just changed these characters names while still making them inspired by their real life counterparts. The old man and the sea by ernest hemingway, our man in havana by graham greene, next year in havana by chanel cleeton, dreaming i. Popular cuba books share book recommendations with your.
Telex from cuba elegantly weaves together a gripping story of individual and their lives leading up to one of the most notorious revolutions of the twentieth century. Looked at from a certain angle, cuba in the 1950s, before the revolution, was a. Jun 02, 2009 with its sharp detail and precisely drawn characters, telex from cuba offers a compelling look at a paradise corrupted. At first, the book i was writingthe mars room, from which stanville was adaptedwas told only from the points of view of fictional characters who were serving time in prison. If you are interested in reading about cuba in the years shortly before the revolution, i recommend telex from cuba. Rachel kushners debut novel, telex from cuba, was a finalist for the national book award in 2008, alongside marilynne robinson home and peter mathiessen, who won with shadow country. Stites, the central characters in rachel kushners debut novel, telex from cuba, are busy coming of age in 1950s cuba. Rachel kushner on prison life, from the inside and outside. Jul 06, 2008 in this multilayered first novel set in 1950s cuba, american expatriates try to bury their dark pasts, even as the castro brothers gather revolutionaries in the hills. Probably the majority of the book, including the beginning and end, are narrated by k. A combination of colourful characters and the wonderful backdrop of cuba, this book makes for an interesting and satisfying read. Apr 23, 2014 telex from cuba, kushners first novel, has now been released in the uk, and readers of the flamethrowers, for whom kushner became an instant necessity, can get a second fix.
Rachel kushner is the bestselling author of the flamethrowers, a finalist for the national book award and a new york times top ten book of 20. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The point of view constantly shifts among a large cast of characters, many of whom are americans living in cuba and working for american companies engaged in the explotation of cubas abundant natural and human resources. Leonardo paduras top 10 cuban novels books the guardian. She has a love for tradition and gets extremely offended when violet says she doesnt want a traditional. Kushners period detail is terrific, and her characters stiffnecked american bosses. Apr 18, 20 3 novels with unforgettable main characters. The authors grandfather was a manager in a cuban nickel mine in the 1950s, and her mother and aunts grew up in the american enclave depicted in the book. Telex from cuba, published in 2008, is a shimmering account of the turmoil leading up to castros ascent, united fruits expulsion, and the expropriation of the nickel mine. Former inspector for the moscow militsiya, arkady renko, is summoned to cuba to identify a liquefying corpse, dragged from the oily waters of havana bay. He is very secretive about cuba and refuses to talk about it. Her face had no features of its own but could be sketched on with a special marker, washed clean and drawn on again.
Kushner chose to tell the story of americans in precastro, prerevolution cuba, through the eyes of the children of american executives who, by the way, knew their own limitationstheyd have nothing comparable to their cuban jobs in the states. Kushners first novel, telex from cuba, was a national book award finalist in 2008, and deservedly so. Finalist for the national book award for fiction the. Kushners colorful, characterdriven debut succinctly captures the essence of life for a gilded circle of american expats in precastro cuba. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of telex from cuba by rachel kushner. Telex from cuba is the most historical in some ways, with the story of the cuban revolution a. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Telex from cuba by rachel kushner and lloyd james audiobook. I started reading waiting for snow in havana, by carlos eire, soon after finishing telex.
928 1095 661 330 335 334 1184 356 198 1368 143 74 1451 1154 945 392 741 586 1422 93 840 546 542 995 858 630 104 137 1448 1095 1370 1466 219 886 517