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The History of Havana (Palgrave Essential Histories) | 
 enlarge | Authors: Dick Cluster, Rafael Hernandez
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Category: Book
List Price: $19.95
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Rating:  4 reviews
Sales Rank: 833957
Media: Paperback
Pages: 320
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5.3 x 1
ISBN: 0230603971
Dewey Decimal Number: 972
EAN: 9780230603974
ASIN: 0230603971
Publication Date: April 29, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Condition: SOFT COVER book in excellent condition-fast ship
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Product Description
This is the first comprehensive history of the culturally diverse city, and the first to be co-authored by a Cuban and an American. Beginning with the founding of Havana in 1519, Cluster and Hernandez explore the making of the city and its people through revolutions, art, economic development and the interplay of diverse societies. The authors bring together conflicting images of a city that melds cultures and influences to create an identity that is distinctly Cuban.
Book Description
In this richly layered and beautifully narrated history of Havana, acclaimed writers Dick Cluster and Rafael Hernandez explore the making of the city, since the founding in 1519 to its revolutionary present. In luminous and engaging prose, Cluster and Hernandez transport the reader into the very midst of Cuban culture through an intimate portrayal of the popular culture, the vibrant art scene, and lively descriptions of the storied city's diverse neighborhoods. Hailed by Harry Belafonte as "serious but easily readable," History of Havana is a compact and complete history of the enchanting city for both history buff and enlightened traveler.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Excellent! May 31, 2008
Alan (Minnesota)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I just finished this and its excellent. Its not political, the authors just tell you about how things have evolved over the years since the first settlers arrived. Their writing is clear and interesting. They don't dwell on the negatives nor do they sugar coat things. If you have a political bone to pick either with or against Castro, you won't find it here. This era is treated just as another chapter in the development of this country pointing out the limitations and improvements made during this time which is likely about to end anyway. If you have interest in learning about this country and what makes it tick, this is a good place to get an overview.
Part history, part storytelling, part love song April 9, 2008
Jean Tepperman (Berkeley, CA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a for-real serious history with all the facts laid out clearly. But what makes it great is partly the many vivid visual descriptions of scenes past and present, and most of all the stories about Havana's strange, wonderful--and ordinary--residents through the centuries. The authors so obviously enjoy the incredible variety of people who gave and give the city its unique character and incredible energy--Spanish, African, and American, artists, hustlers, politicians, workers, dancers, revolutionaries, intellectuals, street vendors, and just plain people trying to get by. I also really liked the description of the love-hate relationship with U.S. culture. This is not a weighty political analysis of the Cuban revolution, but a description of what it felt like to be a Cuban living through it, with what seems to me to be a very honest look at the great achievements and serious problems. I don't know if I'll ever get to Cuba, but reading this book made me feel almost like I had been there, sitting around talking with Cubans about their past, their present, and their stories.
 The History of Havana: read skeptically... and between the lines.... December 28, 2007
Mario G. Garcia (Miami, FL USA)
4 out of 8 found this review helpful
Be aware that this book is only half the story, the half that only includes the despair of the 47 years of "socialist" mismanagment in a once thriving city. I have to be skeptical of the contents when Mr. Belafonte and Mr. Glover, long term apologists for the disastrous Castro regime, offer glowing reviews of the book. La Habana of the first half of the 20th Century may have been less than perfect, but never the city in ruins that it is today. A reader, Mr. Malinowski, talks about the book being "fair and balanced". Sorry, if you did not know Havana before the Castro years, fairness and balance are pure fantasy/fiction. Today's Havana and its inhabitants are in a state of deep despair, and only those who close their eyes to this sad reality will find these musings amusing.
Engaging without being ideological December 18, 2006
J. P. Malinowski (Phila.,Pa USA)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Whatever your feelings about Cuba's revolution and government, this book provides an uncommon and fascinating portrait of Havana and its place in the country's history.
The authors are steeped in the many facets of Cuban cultural and political lore surrounding life in the city but still manage to cover wide swaths of national history. Their treatment of the years since 1959 seem fair and balanced. It is not all about Castro but he is well represented. It is, rather, a story about the people of Havana, past and present. You will meet some unforgettable characters and have your assumptions about Cuba challenged and your sights broadened.
Highly recommended.
Jack Malinowski
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