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Cuba

READING AND TRAVEL GUIDE

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Click on Essential Reading for the featured set of Cuba books and a map. We offer free shipping on anything else you order with the travel books package.

Essential Reading

Item EXCBA36. Buy these 6 items as a set for $99 including shipping, 15% off the retail price.
With free shipping on anything else you order.

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Cuba

Cuba

by Pierre Hausherr | Francois Missen

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 272 PAGES
  • BEST SELLER

With full-page photographs, introductory essays on history, architecture, music, food and more, this oversized, illustrated paperback by Pulitzer-prize winning journalist Francois Missen and photographer Pierre Hausherr captures the spirit of Cuba, its people, nature and culture. (CBA143, $24.95)

Our Man in Havana

Our Man in Havana

by Graham Greene

  • LITERATURE
  • 2007
  • PAPER
  • 240 PAGES
  • FAVORITE

The classic story of a British vacuum cleaner salesman who gets accidentally drawn into cold war espionage with disastrous results. (CBA19, $15.00)

Cuba, A Traveler's Literary Companion

Cuba, A Traveler's Literary Companion

by Ann Louise Bardach

  • ANTHOLOGY
  • 2002
  • PAPER
  • 234 PAGES
  • BEST SELLER

Bardach (Without Fidel) samples terrific contemporary writers for this anthology, organized geographically. (CBA58, $13.95)

Cuba, What Everyone Needs to Know

Cuba, What Everyone Needs to Know

by Julia Sweig

  • HISTORY
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 279 PAGES
  • BEST SELLER

Director for Latin America Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, Sweig traces the geography, history and identity of Cuba in this admirably succinct history of the island nation and its role in world affairs. (CBA126, $16.95)

Moon Handbook Cuba

Moon Handbook Cuba

by Christopher P. Baker

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 684 PAGES
  • BEST SELLER

Baker's comprehensive, indispensable guide leaves no stone unturned, covering the natural, cultural and political life of the island with style. (CBA04, $24.95)

Cuba Map

Cuba Map

by Borch Maps

  • 2011
  • MAP
  • BEST SELLER

A detailed, double-sided laminated map at a scale of 1:1,000,000. (CBA20, $10.95)

 
Culture Smart! Cuba

Culture Smart! Cuba


by Mandy Macdonald

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2006
  • PAPER
  • 168 PAGES

A concise, well-illustrated and practical guide to local customs, etiquette and culture. (CBA105, $9.95)

Bacardi and the Long Fight for Cuba

Bacardi and the Long Fight for Cuba


by Tom Gjelten

  • HISTORY
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 432 PAGES

Gjelten chronicles the rich intersection of business and power, family and politics, community and exile in contemporary Cuba through the saga of the Bacardi family. (CBA117, $17.00)

Cuba

Cuba


by Jeffrey Milstein

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 2010
  • HARD COVER
  • 28 PAGES

Milstein's beautiful collection of 100 photographs captures the colors, textures and people of the alluring and gritty urban Cuba. (CBA135, $25.00)

Cuba, A New History


by Richard Gott

  • HISTORY
  • 2005
  • PAPER
  • 384 PAGES

British journalist Gott casts a fresh eye on the history of the Caribbean island from its pre-Columbian origins to the present. (CBA165, $19.00)

Guantanamo, An American History


by Jonathan M. Hansen

  • HISTORY
  • 2011
  • HARD COVER
  • 428 PAGES

Hansen traces the history and enduring myths surrounding America's oldest naval base. (CBA167, $35.00)

Havana, A Cultural and Literary Companion

Havana, A Cultural and Literary Companion


by Claudia Lightfoot

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 2002
  • PAPER
  • 256 PAGES

An illuminating guide to the city, its history and geography, as the inspiration for writers, artists, musicians and intellectuals. (CBA49, $15.00)

Inside Havana

Inside Havana


by Julio Cesar Perez Hernandez

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 2011
  • HARD COVER
  • 240 PAGES

This handsome book showcases the diverse architecture of Havana, from modernist masterpieces to splendid baroque palaces and traditional businesses such as the Partagas cigar factory, one of Havana's oldest and finest. With expert writing by Hernandez and rich color photographs by Gianni Basso. (CBA102, $29.99)

On Becoming Cuban

On Becoming Cuban


by Louis A. Perez

  • HISTORY
  • 2007
  • PAPER
  • 579 PAGES

A masterful scholarly history of Cubanidad, and the love-hate relationship with the United States. (CBA43, $27.95)

Primary Health Care in Cuba, The Other Revolution

Primary Health Care in Cuba, The Other Revolution


by Laurence Branch | Linda Whiteford

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 138 PAGES

Branch and Whiteford look at Cuba's approaches to child and maternal health, control of communicable and contagious diseases, treatment of chronic diseases, and care for the elderly in this scholarly overview. (CBA147, $24.95)

That Infernal Little Cuban Republic, The United States and the Cuban Revolution

That Infernal Little Cuban Republic, The United States and the Cuban Revolution


by Lars Schoultz

  • HISTORY
  • 2011
  • PAPER
  • 745 PAGES

Drawing on a rich array of firsthand documents and interviews, Schoultz explores the efforts of ten U.S. administrations to end the Cuban Revolution. (CBA128, $29.95)

The Brilliant Disaster

The Brilliant Disaster


by Jim Rasenberger

  • HISTORY
  • 2011
  • HARD COVER
  • 412 PAGES

Rasenberer draws on recently released information from the CIA for this gripping, revisionist account of the doomed invation of the Bay of Pigs, published to coincide with the 50th anniversary. (CBA162, $32.00)

The Cuba Reader: History, Culture, Politics

The Cuba Reader: History, Culture, Politics


by Aviva Chomsky | Barry Carr | Pamela Maria Smorkaloff

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 2004
  • PAPER
  • 723 PAGES

Organized chronologically, this multi-faceted portrait of a nation, with most of the selections by Cuban writers, includes not only history, journalism and literature but also songs, paintings, poems and cartoons and speeches. (CBA93, $29.95)

The History of Havana


by Raphael Hernandez | Dick Cluster

  • HISTORY
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 300 PAGES

Co-authored by a Cuban and an American, this multi-faceted history of the city looks at culture, art, politics and economic development. (CBA159, $19.95)

Violet Isle

Violet Isle


by Alex Webb

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 2009
  • BOXED
  • 143 PAGES

A little-known nickname, Violet Isle seems apt for this collaboration between Alex Webb, who captures Cuba's street life with his trademark attention to detail and color, and Rebecca Norris Webb, whose focus is on animals. Pico Iyer provides the accompanying essay. (CBA151, $50.00)

Walker Evans, Cuba

Walker Evans, Cuba


by Andrei Codrescu | Walker Evans

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 2011
  • PAPER
  • 96 PAGES

The original 1933 photographs of Cuba by the great social realist Walker Evans. (CBA56, $24.95)

Without Fidel

Without Fidel


by Ann Louise Bardach

  • HISTORY
  • 2009
  • HARD COVER
  • 176 PAGES

A PEN award-winning journalist who has covered Cuba for 15 years, Bardach (Cuba Confidential) brings knowledge, tenacity and verve to this report on the future of the country. (CBA112, $28.00)

Cuba and Its Music, From the First Drums to the Mambo

Cuba and Its Music, From the First Drums to the Mambo


by Ned Sublette

  • MUSIC
  • 2007
  • PAPER
  • 688 PAGES

A thorough and entertaining history of Cuba and its music by the popular radio producer, music historian and cofounder of Cuban record label QbaDisc. (CBA129, $21.95)

Cuba Classics, A Celebration of Vintage American Automobiles

Cuba Classics, A Celebration of Vintage American Automobiles


by Christopher P. Baker

  • ART & ARCHITECTURE
  • 2006
  • HARD COVER
  • 208 PAGES

Himself a fan of the open road, Baker celebrates the extraordinary cars, the remarkable people who love them and the Cuban love affair with the U.S. automobile in dozens of dazzling color photographs. (CBA158, $29.95)

Cuba, Art and History from 1868 to Today

Cuba, Art and History from 1868 to Today


by Nathalie Bondil

  • ART & ARCHITECTURE
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 368 PAGES

With ravishing color reproductions of murals, posters, paintings and photographs, this magnificent book documents the history of art in Cuba from independence. (CBA127, $49.95)

Cuban Landscapes: Heritage, Memory and Place

Cuban Landscapes: Heritage, Memory and Place


by Armando H. Portela | Joseph Scarpaci

  • ART & ARCHITECTURE
  • 2002
  • PAPER
  • 464 PAGES

An interdisciplinary examination of the meaning of Cubanness (cubanidad) as manifested through landscape representations. Draws on landscape architecture, art and art history, popular culture, and cultural geography in exploring how insiders and outsiders express aspects of the island's identity and representation (CBA150, $30.00)

Havana, History and Architecture of a Romantic City

Havana, History and Architecture of a Romantic City


by Maria Luisa Lobo Montalvo | Hugh Thomas

  • ART & ARCHITECTURE
  • 2009
  • HARD COVER
  • 320 PAGES

This magnificent history of Havana, featuring 480 color illustrations, shows the city and its growth from Spanish colony to independence. (CBA46, $85.00)

Havana, Two Faces of the Antillean Metropolis

Havana, Two Faces of the Antillean Metropolis


by Joseph Scarpaci | Roberto Segre | Mario Coyula

  • ART & ARCHITECTURE
  • 2002
  • PAPER
  • 437 PAGES

Two leading Cuban architects/planners and a U.S. geographer present an urban historical overview of Havana's urban-social geography from 1519 until today. An American Library Association Choice Outstanding Book Award winner. (CBA91, $26.95)

Before Night Falls

Before Night Falls


by Reinaldo Arenas | Delores Koch

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 1994
  • PAPER
  • 336 PAGES

A deeply moving autobiography, highly critical of the Castro regime. Arenas tells the story of his youth in poor, rural Cuba, his time with Castro's rebels, and his emergence as a writer. Seen as a political dissident both for his political views and his homosexuality, Arenas fled to New York, where he died of AIDS in 1991 (shortly after this book was completed). (CBA37, $16.00)

Biography of a Runaway Slave

Biography of a Runaway Slave


by Miguel Barnet | W. Nick Hill

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 1994
  • PAPER
  • 217 PAGES

An extraordinary portrait of Esteban Monteja, a 105-year-old man who lived through slavery and the Cuban war of independence. (CBA13, $16.95)

Che Guevara, A Revolutionary Life

Che Guevara, A Revolutionary Life


by Jon Lee Anderson

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 672 PAGES

A revised and updated edition of Anderson's definitive biography, published to mark the 50th anniversary of the Cuban Revolution. (CBA113, $20.00)

Cuba Diaries

Cuba Diaries


by Isadora Tattlin

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 2003
  • PAPER
  • 304 PAGES

In this rousing memoir, subtitled An American Housewife in Havana, Tattlin writes with verve of her family's "rowdy, ambiguous, ironic and sometimes exhilarating time" living in 1990s Cuba. (CBA74, $13.95)

Dancing with Cuba, A Memoir of the Revolution

Dancing with Cuba, A Memoir of the Revolution


by Alma Guillermoprieto

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 2005
  • PAPER
  • 304 PAGES

Guillermoprieto writes with her usual insight, wit and lucid prose. about teaching at the National School of Dance in Havana in the 1970s (CBA97, $15.95)

Enduring Cuba

Enduring Cuba


by Zoe Bran

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 256 PAGES

Bran probes beneath the surface in this absorbing account of meeting locals, a Santeria ceremony and many questions about politics. (CBA84, $14.99)

Last Dance in Havana, The Final Days of Fidel and the Start of the New Cuban Revolution

Last Dance in Havana, The Final Days of Fidel and the Start of the New Cuban Revolution


by Eugene Robinson

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2007
  • PAPER
  • 288 PAGES

A journalist's account of life in Cuba and especially the importance of music and dance. (CBA96, $19.95)

Mi Moto Fidel, Motorcycling through Castro's Cuba

Mi Moto Fidel, Motorcycling through Castro's Cuba


by Christopher P. Baker

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2002
  • HARD COVER
  • 305 PAGES
  • HARD TO FIND ELSEWHERE

Baker's lively account of a three-month tour through Cuba on a big, red BMW. No shrinking violet, the popular guidebook author includes his many bar and bedroom scenes in this down-to-earth, personal portrait of contemporary Cuba. (CBA41, $24.95)

This is Cuba

This is Cuba


by Ben Corbett

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2004
  • PAPER
  • 304 PAGES

Corbett interviews everyday people living on the fringe's of Castro's official Cuba for this account, both a stinging indictment government policy and testimony to the Cuban spirit. (CBA157, $18.00)

Trading with the Enemy

Trading with the Enemy


by Tom Miller

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 352 PAGES
  • FAVORITE

Miller captures the openness, sensuality and pride of Cuba and the Cubans in this eloquent account of entertaining travels in Fidel's Cuba. (CBA11, $16.95)

Chango's Beads and Two-Tone Shoes

Chango's Beads and Two-Tone Shoes


by William Kennedy

  • LITERATURE
  • 2011
  • HARD COVER
  • 328 PAGES

His life radically changed by an encounter with Ernest Hemingway in Cuba, journalist Daniel Quinn embarks on a turbulant journey marked by such historical events as the Albany race riots, the rise of Fidel Castro and the assassination of Robert Kennedy. (CBA160, $26.95)

Dirty Havana Trilogy

Dirty Havana Trilogy


by Natasha Wimmer | Pedro Juan Gutierrez

  • LITERATURE
  • 2002
  • PAPER
  • 392 PAGES

A novel of contemporary Havana's steamy underbelly, originally published in Spain -- and banned in the author's native Cuba. (CBA44, $14.99)

Dreaming in Cuban

Dreaming in Cuban


by Cristina Garcia

  • LITERATURE
  • 1993
  • PAPER
  • 244 PAGES

A short, poetic novel of three generations of Cuban women, their reaction to the revolution and the complex relation between those who remained in Cuba and those who settled in the United States. Excellent reading. (CBA18, $13.95)

Telex from Cuba

Telex from Cuba


by Rachel Kushner

  • LITERATURE
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 336 PAGES

Kushner re-imagines the world of her mother in this astonishingly wise first novel set in the American enclave in 1950s Cuba. Riveting. (CBA111, $16.00)

The Old Man and the Sea

The Old Man and the Sea


by Ernest Hemingway

  • LITERATURE
  • 1995
  • PAPER
  • 127 PAGES

Hemingway's brief story of a fisherman who after 84 days with no luck finally makes a big catch is also an affectionate portrait of life in Cuba. It won the 1953 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. (CBA02, $12.00)

Travelers' Tales of Old Cuba, From Treasure Island to Mafia Den

Travelers' Tales of Old Cuba, From Treasure Island to Mafia Den


by John Jenkins

  • ANTHOLOGY
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 175 PAGES

This collection of first-hand accounts documents the evolution of Havana from a port popular with Caribbean pirates to the tourist-centered urban paradise of today and everything in between. (CBA137, $15.95)

Natural Cuba

Natural Cuba


by Alfonso Silva Lee

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 1997
  • PAPER
  • 173 PAGES

A natural history of the Caribbean's largest tropical island. (CBA25, $24.95)

A Photographic Guide to Birds of the West Indies

A Photographic Guide to Birds of the West Indies


by Allan Sander | G. Michael Flieg

  • FIELD GUIDE
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 144 PAGES

A compact shirt-pocket guide. With a map of the islands and 300 color photographs. (CRB127, $15.95)

Birds of Cuba

Birds of Cuba


by Orlando Garrido | Arturo Kirkconnell | Lester Short

  • FIELD GUIDE
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 253 PAGES

A compact field guide to the birds of Cuba, featuring 51 color plates, detailed species accounts, and 144 local maps. The authors are curators at the National Museum of Natural History of Cuba. (CBA28, $29.95)

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