Cuba Libre

Rating:
Summary: CUBA-STAN
Review: Larry Rochelle..., an author of DEATH & DEVOTION,...
CUBA-STAN
I'm getting tired of the War in Afghanistan: crazy situation, outrageous acts, stupid and ignorant terrorists. But Elmore Leonard captured Afghanistan exactly in CUBA LIBRE, some four years before we became entangled over in the land of the Stans. His book about the explosion of the Battleship Maine in a Cuban harbor tells us oh-so-much about Afghanistan. Warlords? CUBA LIBRE'S got them. Assassinations? Ditto. Plot-counter-plot? Ditto. Primitive living conditions? Check. Intrigue and a beautiful woman? Double-check and double-cross. Leonard creates a pretty scary story for ninety-five percent of his book. Then, in the last few chapters, he can't keep his head clear. Too many plots. Too much destruction. And when he must, really must, kill off his hero cowboy or the beautiful woman, Leonard can't do it, and CUBA LIBRE turns into farce. I didn't throw the book across the room in anger. No, I just sizzled in the 85 degree Kansas City heat, pondering Leonard's motivation and the Cuban-slash-Afghanistan weirdness. Really, if an author must kill the girl, he should go ahead and kill her. Leonard, I figure, was writing a tragedy but something inside him held back. I think it was his love of the weird and his obsession with happy endings. Or else he's from Afghanistan.

Also recommended: HUEY LONG INVADES NEW ORLEANS (weird politics) by Gary Boulard THE ISLAND OF LOST MAPS (weird crimes) by Miles Harvey NEW JACK (prison weirdness) by Ted Conover

Rating:
Summary: CUBA-STAN
Review: Larry Rochelle..., an author of DEATH & DEVOTION,...
CUBA-STAN
I'm getting tired of the War in Afghanistan: crazy situation, outrageous acts, stupid and ignorant terrorists. But Elmore Leonard captured Afghanistan exactly in CUBA LIBRE, some four years before we became entangled over in the land of the Stans. His book about the explosion of the Battleship Maine in a Cuban harbor tells us oh-so-much about Afghanistan. Warlords? CUBA LIBRE'S got them. Assassinations? Ditto. Plot-counter-plot? Ditto. Primitive living conditions? Check. Intrigue and a beautiful woman? Double-check and double-cross. Leonard creates a pretty scary story for ninety-five percent of his book. Then, in the last few chapters, he can't keep his head clear. Too many plots. Too much destruction. And when he must, really must, kill off his hero cowboy or the beautiful woman, Leonard can't do it, and CUBA LIBRE turns into farce. I didn't throw the book across the room in anger. No, I just sizzled in the 85 degree Kansas City heat, pondering Leonard's motivation and the Cuban-slash-Afghanistan weirdness. Really, if an author must kill the girl, he should go ahead and kill her. Leonard, I figure, was writing a tragedy but something inside him held back. I think it was his love of the weird and his obsession with happy endings. Or else he's from Afghanistan.

Also recommended: HUEY LONG INVADES NEW ORLEANS (weird politics) by Gary Boulard THE ISLAND OF LOST MAPS (weird crimes) by Miles Harvey NEW JACK (prison weirdness) by Ted Conover

Rating:
Summary: Pretty Pedestrian
Review: Much-hyped, this latest book from Leonard only confirms my opinion that he's a decent genre writer, but little more. Set in Cuba, the book uses the Spanish-American War (starting with the destruction of The Maine) as its backdrop. The story itself is the usual Leonard stuff, a righteous cowboy bank-robber helps a buddy export some horses to Cuba, along with arms for the native insurgents. They soon run afoul of both the law, and the nasty sugar cane baron they are supposed to deliver the horses to. The sugar baron has a lovely young kept woman who falls for the cowboy, and they spend the rest of the book trying to hook up while getting pursued by various foes. There's also a "fake" kidnapping and ransom, which has a predictable ending. The historical milieu is pretty interesting, albeit rather heavy-handed in many cases and the Spanish are cast rather a shade too dastardly. There's a bit at the end where this newspaper guy delivers a lecture which is so unrelated to the story that it ought to be used as an example of how not to write historical fiction. I guess it's worth reading if you're a Leonard fan, others will get moderate mileage from it. I think the Coen Bros. have acquired the film rights to it.

Rating:
Summary: Bringing a portion of Cuba's past to life
Review: My motivation for picking up my first Elmore Leonard novel lies with my love for the movies "Out of Sight" and "Get Shorty." Although this novel takes a genre detour, I was pleased with my choice. Leonard did a great job of bringing late 19th century Cuba to life by painting a wonderful contrast between the beauty of the land and the ugliness of politics and human motivation. Ben Tyler isn't the hero I would have hoped for but he was the best that he could be. Pick it up, it won't take long to read, and you'll be glad you did.

Rating:
Summary: Cowboy in Cuba
Review: The year is 1897. Steaming into Havana harbor past the wreckage of the battleship Maine, the cargo ship "Vamoose" carries cattle, a herd of horses under care of Arizona wrangler Ben Tyler, and hidden under the manure, guns for the Cuban insurgency. Fated by this reckless challenge to the brutal and capricious Spanish authorities in Cuba, Ben finds himself fighting for survival, as civil order gives way to war. It's a tropical Wild West story, masterfully told. Leonard is at the peak of his power as a writer. His characters are flawed, complex, and interesting, and the action fast-paced. As is often the case when a writer is in tune with his material, the reader learns much about the great events unfolding as historical context. Though I wasn't there then, this feels like Cuba and is a fitting celebration of the 100th anniversary of Cuban independence from Spain. In the audio version, Alexander Adams is superb, particularly with the gruff Spanish and Cuban accents.

Rating:
Summary: Cowboy in Cuba
Review: The year is 1897. Steaming into Havana harbor past the wreckage of the battleship Maine, the cargo ship "Vamoose" carries cattle, a herd of horses under care of Arizona wrangler Ben Tyler, and hidden under the manure, guns for the Cuban insurgency. Fated by this reckless challenge to the brutal and capricious Spanish authorities in Cuba, Ben finds himself fighting for survival, as civil order gives way to war. It's a tropical Wild West story, masterfully told. Leonard is at the peak of his power as a writer. His characters are flawed, complex, and interesting, and the action fast-paced. As is often the case when a writer is in tune with his material, the reader learns much about the great events unfolding as historical context. Though I wasn't there then, this feels like Cuba and is a fitting celebration of the 100th anniversary of Cuban independence from Spain. In the audio version, Alexander Adams is superb, particularly with the gruff Spanish and Cuban accents.

Rating:
Summary: A bit different for Elmore Leonard
Review: This happens to be the first audio book that I have sampled. I usually prefer to read my books, but a recent change in my work life has forced me to do a lot more driving, so I thought that I'd try this format to help pass the time. It took a bit of getting used to to have the book read to me, but I rather enjoyed the experience. It certainly does help pass the time while driving. I would never choose to listen to audio-books at home because I derive such pleasure from reading, though. Anyway, to the story. This book is a quite a bit different from what we expect from Elmore Leonard. It takes us to Cuba just before the Spanish-American war (1897) and we see the country as it was then through some ex-patriot Americans' eyes. I'm not sure how true to actual are the historical facts, but the story was pretty good. There is a pretty good villain in the story, and the cowboy and his girl are kind of fun. The best thing about Elmore Leonard stories is the dialogue and this one does not disappoint in this area either. I look forward to more audio-books.

Rating:
Summary: An ordinary, rather shallow story...screenplay material
Review: This is my first Elmore Leonard book. I've seen so many of his novels(?) in the bookstores and stories turned into movies that I thought it worth reading this latest. Cuba Libre was somewhat disappointing. If you are looking for a short, fast, book that can be read in a day or two, one that really doesn't develop characters then this is an okay, adequate read. I'll probably try other Leonard books but if Cuba Libre is any indication of his style I won't be waiting with bated breath for his next one. He glosses over so much and is lacking in character development that it is hard to be "hungry" for the next page or chapter or scene. It almost seems as if he is more interested in quantity of books than quality. Maybe I'm used to reading longer, richer, more detailed and indepth NOVELS like "Lonesome Dove"(McMurtry), "Homeland"(Jakes) ,"California Gold"(Jakes), "Trinity"(Uris). Even Pat Conroy's "The Great Santini" and "The Lord's of Discipline" as well as Harold Coyle's twin historical fiction(Civil War) novels "Look Away" and "Until the End" are better books for characters development and storytelling. To sum up, Cubra Libra was kind of like chewing on tasteless gum. Something to do ...

Rating:
Summary: Western Con Men Mix It Up With Cuban Revolutionaries in 1898
Review: To me, the strength of Elmore Leonard has always been in his dialogue. He has an ability to capture the venacular that is almost unsurpassed, and his crime novels "ring" true with an amazing resonance as a consequence. When we hear those cadences and accents, we know the real nature of the characters and their thoughts in a subliminal and subconscious way. Moving this "crime story" to Cuba during the Spanish American war means that the currency of the dialogue is lost on us. So the book becomes dependent on the plot and characterizations to entertain us. Both areas are a little stronger than usual for Mr. Leonard, but not as strong as they should be. The descriptions of the geographic settings are much better than Mr. Leonard usually does, and that element greatly improves this book.

The book's concept is an intriguing one. Take some Americans in Cuba who are directly and indirectly involved in the Spanish-American War, and use that plot complication to develop their relationships and characters. The execution unfortunately falls short of the full potential of the concept.

The Americans and Cuban revolutionaries are pretty cynically "in it for the money" whenever there is any to be made. Their sense of honor is most seriously engaged when they are not being treated fairly in business dealings. Ho hum!

The book's action begins with the American battleship, Maine, recently sunk in Havana's harbor. Two Americans have arrived ostensibly to sell some horses and cattle, but really to smuggle in weapons for the Cuban revolutionaries who oppose the Spanish. Things start to go wrong when the Spanish offend one of the Americans, leading to a shooting. Matters get worse when the horse buyer reneges on his offer of full payment. Following the shooting, the two Americans find themselves in prison while the Spanish try to find the weapons that were smuggled in. Things look bleak, and they get bleaker. Along the way, Ben Tyler finds that a fellow prisoner is a Marine from the Maine who is wrongfully imprisoned by the Spanish as well. With the help of the revolutionaries, Tyler finds himself able to pursue his opportunities to find love and a fortune in Cuba. The second half of the book involves a very detailed scam in which the double crosses pile on top of each other quite rapidly in classic Leonard style.

The Tyler character parallels that of Jean Valjean in Les Miserables. You learn what he is about by how he handles his trials. A man of great perseverance, his weakness is striking to take what he feels to be his by right . . . even when that doesn't make much sense. As a result, he finds himself getting into unnecesary and dangerous trouble. But on occasion, his ability to strike like a rattlesnake enables him to serve himself and others well. He certainly is a good man to have as your friend, and a bad man to have as your enemy.

If you are feeling lonely for a western-style novel, this one may fit the bill. If you have read relatively few, I suggest that you read Owen Wister's, The Virginian, instead.

After you finish enjoying this novel, I suggest that you think about how you respond to challenges to your honor and safety. Are you too aggressive, not aggressive enough, or oblivious? What do you need to change in order to respond quickly and appropriately?

Remember what Davey Crockett used to say, "Be sure you're right, then go ahead."

Rating:
Summary: Historical fiction
Review: Typical Elmore Leonard's crime genre, set against Spanish American war of 1898. Ben Tyler, a gun runner from Arizona is enticed by his friend Charlie Burke to bring horses to Cuba in a plot to smuggle guns to the Cubans who are fighting the Dons, Spaniards. The story then twists and turns with misstress,sugar mills, dungeons, duels, gun fights, bank robberiers, train explosions, with end never in doubt. Leonard created an unforgetable charector in Rolland Burdreaux, the American Industrialist, an opportunist and yet a realist...A good history lesson witout any clues to how the MAINE really blew up. It will always be a mystry.