Fidel Castro: A Biography
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Fidel Castro is one of the most interesting and controversial personalities of our time – he has become a myth and an icon. He was the first Cuban Caudillo – the man who freed his country from dependence on the USA and who lead his people to rediscover their national identity and pride. Castro has outlived generations of American presidents and Soviet leaders. He has survived countless assassination attempts by the CIA, the Mafia, and Cubans living in exile. He has become one of the greatest politicians of the 20th Century. His biography, and the history of his country exemplify the tensions between East and West, North and South, rich and poor. As Castro's life draws to a close, the question as to what will become of Cuba is more important that ever. Will Castro open Cuba to economic reform and democratization, or stick to his old slogan socialism or death?In this remarkable, up-to-date reconstruction of Castro's life, Volker Skierka addresses these questions and provides an account of the economic, social, and political history of Cuba since Castro's childhood. He draws on a number of little-known sources, including material from the East German communist archives on Cuba, which were until recently inaccessible. This is an exciting, painstakingly researched, and authortiative account of the life of one of the most extraordinary political figures of our time.
List of PlatesixA Note of ThanksxiAcknowledgmentsxiiiPreface to the English Editionxiv1The Heroic Myth12The Young Fidel5Among Jesuits5Among gangsters203The Young Revolutionary31Storm and stress: Moncada31"Che," the Argentinean40Stormy crossing on the Granma43A guerrillero in the Sierra Maestra48321 against 10,000574The Young Victor68Communists and "barbudos"681,500 revolutionary laws785Old Enemies, New Friends91The great powers at the gates91The CIA, the Mafia, and the Bay of Pigs100Fidelismo114"Mongoose" and "Anadyr"124Thirteen days on the brink of a third world war131Three gamblers1446The Long March with Che154Moscow, Beijing, and Havana154The new man160The demise of Che1677Bad Times, Good Times180War and peace with Moscow180Ten million tons192Into the Third World200The revolution devours its children2138Alone against All226Exodus to Florida226Rectificacion and perestroika236The Soviet imperium collapses255The brother's power271War economy in peacetime2829The Eternal Revolutionary294Class struggle on a dollar basis294Cuba and the global policeman310Castro, God, and the Pope333Freedom or "socialismo tropical"35210Don Quixote and History366Notes380Bibliography411Index426
