The Initials of the Earth (Paperback)

Many critics consider The Initials of the Earth to be the quintessential novel of the Cuban Revolution and the finest work by the Cuban writer and filmmaker Jesus Diaz. Born in Havana in 1941, Diaz was a witness to the Revolution and ardent supporter of it until the last decade of his life. In 1992 he took up residence as an exile in Berlin and later in Madrid, where he died in 2002. This is the first of his books to be translated into English.Originally written in the 1970s, then rewritten and published simultaneously in Havana and Madrid in 1987, The Initials of the Earth spans the tumultuous years from the 1950s until the 1970s, encompassing the Revolution and its immediate aftermath. The novel opens as the protagonist, Carlos Perez Cifredo, sits down to fill out a questionnaire for readmission to the Cuban Communist Party. It closes with Carlos standing before a panel of Party members charged with assessing his merit as an "exemplary worker." The chapters between relate Carlos's experiences of the pre- and postrevolutionary era. His family is torn apart as some members reject the Revolution and flee the country while others, including Carlos, choose to stay. He witnesses key events including the Bay of Pigs invasion, the Cuban missile crisis, and the economically disastrous sugar harvest of 1970. Throughout the novel, Diaz vividly renders Cuban culture through humor, slogans, and slang; Afro-Cuban religion; and references to popular music, movies, and comics. This edition of The Initials of the Earth includes a bibliography and filmography of Diaz's works and a timeline of the major events of the Cuban revolutionary period. In his epilogue, the Cuban writer Ambrosio Fornet reflects on Diaz's surprising 1992 renunciation of the Revolution, their decades-long friendship, and the novel's reception, structure, and place within Cuban literary history.

General

Imprint:	Duke University Press
Country of origin:	United States
Series:	Latin America in Translation
Release date:	October 2006
First published:	October 2006
Authors:	Jesus Diaz
Translators:	Kathleen Ross
Dimensions:	235 x 156 x 28mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback - Trade
Pages:	456
ISBN-13:	978-0-8223-3844-4
Categories:	Books > Fiction > General & literary fiction > Modern fiction Promotions
LSN:	0-8223-3844-0
Barcode:	9780822338444

Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate? Let us know about it.

Does this product have an incorrect or missing image? Send us a new image.

Is this product missing categories? Add more categories.

Review This Product

No reviews yet - be the first to create one!