Product Description

Havana . . . lilting rumbas, café con leche, sultry sea breezes. Sparkling white beaches by day, scintillating nightclubs after dark. This sophisticated, international capital was the crown jewel of an island paradise-until the idealism that fed the Cuban Revolution yielded a nightmare of soul-crushing dictatorship. Adios, Havana is a true account of romance and peril, adventure and patriotism. Fueled by love-love of family, of country, and of each other-a young couple must face the most wrenching of choices: remain in the country they cherish, lose the wealth and position their families strove for generations to attain, and watch their children grow up impoverished under a terrifying regime; or risk escaping with no money or possessions and leave behind all they have ever known to begin a new life in a strange land. A legacy to future generations, this memoir is intended to remind readers of the fragility of freedom . . . to describe the disintegration of a prosperous civilized society and offer counsel on how to prevent a similar catastrophe from happening in America . . . and to show how and why penniless refugees flourish in the land of the free-why anyone who resists oppression would be driven to tell his beloved homeland, Adios.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #40092 in Books
• Published on: 2005-08-29
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

About the Author
A former business executive, Andrew J. Rodriguez dedicates his retirement years to writing and family. In addition to this memoir, he is the author of The Teleportation of an American Teenager, a novel for all ages. He and his wife live in Colorado and Florida.

Excerpted from Adios, Havana: A Memoir by Andrew J. Rodriguez. Copyright © 2005. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Now that I've tried to answer the sticky question as quickly and politically correct as I could, I shall launch this narrative by rewinding my imagination to Havana in the mid-fifties, and while at it, borrow from Dickens 's masterpiece, "Tale of Two Cities", the most fitting of all introductory lines:

"It was the best of times. It was the worst of times..."

And let it go at that.

I have learned from my ancestors that if every man writes a book, plants a tree, and fathers a child, the world around him will be more agreeable. This book is my tree. The roots reach back sixty years. Its fruits are still fesh.
Not a celebrity in any way, I'm a common man who feels compelled to share his memoirs with his adopted countrymen for the sake of reflection. Therefore, I shall raise my martini glass and propose a toast:

"May the story of our lives bring enlightenment to the blind, appreciation for our liberties in America, the resolve to learn from the past, and the tenacity to prevent neglicence from tainting our country's self-determination...for centuries to come: Salud!

Customer Reviews

Not literature
This book was recommended based on my Amazon reading and buying habits. Not sure why, though. It appears to be a self-published book...nice for the author's relatives or for people who fled Cuba. As literature, though, it just doesn't stack up. I'm disappointed that it was recommended via Amazon and will be more skeptical of those recommendations in the future.

Very Familiar
This book is a joy. Mr. Rodriguez' voice is loud and clear Cuban. In this book I reheard my mother's story. Thank You!!

An Inside look at Cuba
Before he and his wife flee Communist Cuba in the 60's for American freedom, the author paints vivid pictures of his beloved land and lifestye before and at the beginning of Castro's dictatorship.
Arriving in Miami, FL, they're eventually "adopted" by a Colorado church where they relocate to find housing and jobs. Because of their skills and eagerness to work hard, they become contributors to American society and earn US citizenship.
While the US is not perfect, this book helps me appreciate our various freedoms, and God's love expressed through good people. I recommend this book to those who take our democracy for granted.

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