Cuba
on the Edge: Short Stories from the Island
Edited
by Mary G. Berg, Pamela Carmell and Anne Fountain
Year of Publication: 2007
Cuba on the Edge presents recent short stories by twenty-one of the best writers on the island. The title refers both to Cubans' awareness of living on the brink of an unknown future, and to the edginess with which they negotiate their way through uncertainties. These twenty-one perspectives reveal very diverse responses to the challenges of daily life. Some stories are set in Havana, while others depict rural or small town Cuba. Many analyze gender roles and gender politics, as well as depicting economic stress and ingenious coping strategies. Some tales are dark, while others are hilarious. Some voices remember the past, and others imagine the future. Many stories address contro-versial topics: prostitution, crime, exile, disillusionment, skepticism. But the predominant tone is of reaffirmation of human ties and survival, and of celebration of the complex strata of Cuban experience.
You
can see
the
front
and end papers of this book (PDF, 59Kb), comprising contents
page, editors' preface, and information on the authors and translators
(PDF, 64Kb). You can read the review of the book in The
Latin Americanist (June 2008; PDF, 1MB) and you can also view the
publicity flier
for this title (PDF,
55Kb).
Mary
G. Berg, Pamela Carmell and Anne Fountain
are professional U.S. translators and teachers.
They first met in Havana in January 2000 at a gathering of U.S. and
Cuban writers organized by Writers of the Americas and the Cuban National
Union of Writers and Artists, and have been translating the work of
contemporary Cuban writers ever since.
This anthology, superbly translated, offers a broad sample of the rich literature produced in Cuba since the demise of the Soviet Union. The content is controversial (as well as being insightful and provocative), and the literary quality of the stories is excellent. The collection represents a timely introduction to the vibrant narrative found on the island today, and complements the superb cultural experience found in contemporary Cuban cinema, music and dance. John M. Kirk, Dalhousie University
An amazing anthology of short stories. It offers funny and intelligent insights about the life of ordinary people with capitalistic desires hustling to survive and live with dignity in a socialist republic. Muthoni Garland
RETAIL
DETAIL
ISBN
978-1-905510-04-7
(Paperback, 238 pages)
£11.99
(posted free by air to anywhere in the world)
E-VERSIONS
You can buy
this title much cheaper in various e-versions (Kindle, ePub, PDF) from
the e-publisher of the book,
Book
Cyclone,
or Barnes
& Noble, or Amazon.com.