Bacardí Y La Larga Lucha Por Cuba - by Tom Gjelten (Paperback)

About the Book

A history of Cuba as reflected by the famous Bacardi rum family traces five generations during which they served as an example of business and civic leadership while alternately fighting for national freedom and honoring their country as exiles.

Book Synopsis

En 1862, Facundo Bacardí apostó por crear en Cuba una pequeña destilería de ron, una bebida que hasta entonces solo consumían marineros y obreros. Pronto el ron Bacardí se convertiría en la bebida favorita de la isla y quedaría ligado a la identidad cubana.

Recorriendo la historia de la familia Bacardí, que siempre ha estado en primer plano en todos los grandes acontecimientos de la historia de Cuba --desde la Independencia hasta el actual embargo pasando por la Revolución y Bahía de Cochinos-- Tom Gjelten ha escrito una épica narrativa que explica la Cuba moderna, sus tormentosas relaciones con Estados Unidos, la ascensión de Fidel Castro --de la que se ofrece una perspective hasta ahora desconocida-- y la violenta división que sufre la nación cubana desde entonces.

Review Quotes

"The Bacardi liquor story is every bit as engaging as Cuba's tumultuous political history, and both narrative strands are inexorably intertwined."
-The Washington Post

"A gripping saga that tells us just as much about human nature and the struggle between power and freedom as it does about Bacardi's transformation from a fledgling business into the world's top family-owned distiller."
-The Wall Street Journal

"It's hard to imagine that any [Cuban history] is as enjoyable . . . as smooth and refreshing as a well-made daiquiri."
-Barry Gewen, The New York Times

About the Author

Tom Gjelten is a veteran correspondent for National Public Radio on international issues and a regular panelist on the PBS program Washington Week. His reporting from Bosnia won him George Polk and Robert F. Kennedy awards. He is the author of Sarajevo Daily: A City and Its Newspaper Under Siege. He lives in Arlington, Virginia, with his family.