Book Description
This indispensable book includes three of Che Guevara’s most influential essays describing his tactical philosophy of fighting a guerrilla war in Latin America. Guerrilla Warfare, written in 1960, outlines Guevara’s doctrine for guerrilla fighters, especially against Caribbean-style dictatorships. In Guerrilla Warfare: A Method (1963) and Message to the Tricontinental (1967), Guevara modified some of his earlier tenets. These latter two works move away from his earlier dogmatism, suggesting that Marxist revolution was possible even in purportedly democratic regimes. All three essays reflect his deeply held belief that a small, rural-based guerrilla army could trigger a revolution.
Customer Reviews:
How does it end? He dies........2007-09-04
This guy was educated, but not smart enough to follow his own preaching. He separated himself from his popular base, communist/leftist college students, and went out to help aid the people. If he had paid attention in Guerilla Warfare 101 (read: On Guerilla Warfare by Mao Tse Tung) he would done more than fight in the wilderness.
Guerilla tactics involve (as most everyone knows now) convincing as many civilians, proletariat or not, to fight by your standard. Che only became a martyr when photos of his corpse, incidentally posed Christ-like, were released to a largely Catholic public.
narrow.......2007-08-07
narrow-mined, outdated. would have been a great read in the early 50's. Please forward an edition to all of our "un-friendlies".
Don't expect too much.......2007-06-27
The introduction to this book nails it when describing the text as more of a historical document and less of a manual to guerilla warfare.
I understand the iconic stature that Che holds, and that this was brought about through martyrdom, but Guerilla Warfare wholly reinforces the adage of 'actions speak louder than words'; this book is dull and simple. It reads as if it was written by a stoned 10th grader doing a book report on the book I expected this to be, and it seems that 'revolutionary' and 'author/writer' are not interchangeable terms.
Interesting but Flawed.......2007-03-14
"Guerilla Warfare" explains well the method by which guerilla armies obtain their arms, using their enemy as their suppliers through hit and run captures of armaments. An overview of guerilla organization and methodology is provided. However, Che's personal experience seems to be his only source. The book lacks insights from the experiences of others in similar but culturally different and technologically different circumstances. Che makes universal inferences from his narrow experience. When he himself applied this theory, later in his life, to other circumstances, he failed. For example, he seems to believe that the will to fight a guerilla war can, in all cases, be created by the guerillas themselves. While it certainly would be inspirational to hear of a guerilla movement in one's own country fighting the forces of oppression, it is a mistake to believe that this will inevitably lead to a growing movement towards general insurrection. When Che tried this in Bolivia, he failed (fatally so).
I would recommend this book as a summary of Che's insights into guerilla warfare but would caution the reader to avoid accepting Che's conclusions as well founded. Avoid his mistake and read the works of Mao and others before drawing universal conclusions on guerilla warfare.
VIB: Very Important Book.......2006-06-20
WARNING!
Some people are afraid of reality. Please read this book.
Book Description
This is Che Guevara's last diary, compiled from the notebooks found in his knapsack when he was captured by the Bolivian army in October 1967 and subsequently executed. It is the basis of a new biopic directed by Steven Soderbergh (Traffic, Ocean's Eleven) starring Benicio del Toro as Che.
Now revised by Che's widow (who originally transcribed the diary), this is the definitive account of the attempt to spark a continent-wide revolution in Latin America.
The story of the publication of The Bolivian Diary is itself a remarkable saga. Initially published as extracts by the CIA in order to discredit Che's guerrilla movement and to justify mass arrests in Bolivia and elsewhere, it was also used in the trial of Regis Debray and to suggest a romance between Che and Tania (the subject of Ulises Estrada's book Tania: Undercover with Che Guevara in Bolivia, published by Ocean Press in spring 2005), who will be portrayed by Franka Potente (Run Lola Run, The Bourne Supremacy) in Soderbergh's movie.
Features of this new edition include an insightful preface by Che's eldest son Camilo Guevara; a range of new materials such as photos, maps, documents, and a glossary prepared in collaboration with the Che Guevara Studies Center (Havana); as well as memoirs by guerrillas who fought with Che in Bolivia.
The Soderbergh movie about Che Guevara will be based on two new Ocean Press fall 2005 titles: The Bolivian Diary and Reminiscences of the Cuban Revolutionary War.
Book Description
Ernesto "Che" Guevara was one of the greatest exemplars of the revolutionary 1960s, a man whose heroic adventures were essential to the success of the Cuban Revolution and whose legend fired the imaginations of a whole generation. In 1965, amid worldwide conjecture, Guevara left Cuba, where he was a minister in Fidel Castro's postrevolutionary government, and traveled incognito to the heart of Africa. People's hero Patrice Lumumba had recently been assassinated, and Guevara was to put his theories of guerrilla warfare to use helping the oppressed people of the Congo throw off the yoke of colonial imperialism. The first task was to assist the young Laurent Kabila in his struggle against Mobutu and Tshombe, the two key figures in the newly independent nation. For the first time, The African Dream collects Guevara's unabridged journals of the expedition. They are the record of the bitter failure of a political and ideological dream, and a telling complement to the subsequent rise of Kabila and his recent demise. Most of all, the diaries afford the reader a very personal insight into the thoughts and emotions of Che Guevara, the twentieth century's great revolutionary martyr.
Customer Reviews:
Entertaining.......2005-12-08
While it might not have been intended as such this is actually a pretty funny read. 'Che' may have been motivated by high ideals but in his diaries he documents the nitty gritty of daily life and the trials of trying to whip a revolutionary army into shape. Frequently beset by attacks of 'the runs' (many times a day) and having to deal with Congolese soldiers who wanted nothing more than to run away from the first sign of trouble unless they had consumed their magic drink that made them impervious to bullets, the campaign seems to have been doomed from the start. If you want to get a different view of the reality of revolution from that presented in manifestos this strikingly honest diary seems like a great place to start.
Che in the Congo.......2005-08-15
The African Dream is a great book for people interested to learn what happened during the first of Che's 2 "lost years." In April, 1965, Che left Cuba, not to be seen again until his murder in Bolivia in October of 1967. Che first tried to bring about revolution in the Congo, which was undergoing the beginning of the Apartheid government that was to take the lives of millions of innocent Africans in the coming years. In Che's own words, you will gain massive insight into what went on during that nearly year long struggle for freedom and justice.
Book Description
A new, revised and expanded edition of an Ocean Press classic.
This reader is the bestselling, most comprehensive selection of Che Guevara's writings, letters and speeches available in English. This volume covers Che's writings on the Cuban revolutionary war, the first years of the revolution in Cuba and his vision for Latin America and the Third World. It includes such classic essays as "Socialism and Man in Cuba" and his call to create "Two, Three, Many Vietnams."
Among the features of this expanded edition are several unpublished articles, essays and letters, including a letter from Che to his children shortly before his death in Bolivia in 1967 and an essay, "Strategy and tactics for the Latin American revolution."
This new edition of a popular Ocean title is published in collaboration with the Che Guevara Archive in Havana. It includes:
a new 24-page selection of photos (many previously unpublished)
an expanded and revised chronology
complete bibliography of the works of Che Guevara
new, extensive annotation and index
"Deep inside the T-shirt where we have tried to trap him the eyes of Che Guevara are still burning with im-patience."-Ariel Dorfman
Two new movies to be released in Fall 2003 confirm Che's enduring status as an "icon of the century."
Ocean Press is preparing a range of merchandise, including T-shirts, bookmarks and posters to promote our books on Che Guevara.
This new, expanded edition of an Ocean Press classic complements several bestselling biographies of Che Guevara.
Customer Reviews:
A Look Into The Ideas Behind The Icon.......2007-03-17
Che Guevara has been so etched into the public consciousness as an icon of revolution, rebellion and guerrilla warfare that it is easy for many to forget about the more intellectual aspects of the man. The "Che Guevara Reader" is the perfect tool to really study and learn the ideas behind Guevara's quest for Latin American unity against imperialism, poverty and racism. The depth of thought and analysis will be stunning to many, there are passages where Guevara writes and expresses at a level worthy of Noam Chomsky. Here we see that the man was no joke, there were very real philosophies behind his drive for revolution. The book covers Che's writings from the time of the Cuban guerrilla war against the U.S.-backed Batista dictatorship to his various speeched as Cuba's ambassador to the world. Among the most powerful pieces are his speeched at such forums as the United Nations, where Guevara gives an angry, heartfelt summary of the suffering felt in the Americas at the hands of imperialism and how the people will rise. When one looks at current events in Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador, there is more resonance to a passage where Che states, "our example will bear fruit." Some of the most fascinating passages in the book deal with the concepts behind social progress and unity, where Che stresses the need to work as one and not give in to shallow materialism. Che especially focuses on the need for education to build a stronger system and build social consciousness. Che and Fidel bashers will be infuriated by sections where Guevara clearly states that not ALL aspects of Marxism work for a society, destroying the myth of Che being a radical dogmatic Communist. There are also interesting speeches where Guevara expresses the need to analyze what kind of revolution every country needs, what worked in Cuba might not work for example, in Chile where the people elected Salvador Allende without having to resort to a guerrilla war, interestingly Latin America's recent tilt to the Left has been driven mostly be democratic elections as well. There is also a wonderful depth of feeling in writings where Che states the need for a true revolutionary to have a sense of love, real, true love and not pure cold calculation. The most rewarding experience of reading the "Che Guevara Reader" is realizing how important these ideas are for our times as well when corporate ideals have monopolized our industrial nations and created a huge gap between the poor and rich. Some will be surprised to find only a fraction of this book dedicated to pure guerrilla warfare talk (for that check Guevara's "Guerrilla Warfare") and a good 90% dedicated to discussions on society, people and the need for true social reforms in the face of tyrannical capitalism and social inequality. A valuable book so you can wear the T-shirt, but know the philosophy as well.
Che as a Guerilla Leader.......2002-06-29
Good book, but be prepared. Che was a failure as a guerrilla leader because he refused to accept the possibility that a revolution could begin and end in major population centers. He reallty didn't have many wins to his favor when he was in charge.
Che.......2001-01-20
This is a good book if you want to know about Che's Marxists theories and if you want to know some of his views on the world during his time. But this book (though it is good) only scratches the surface a good portion of these speeches and essays have been published in many other books what the editor should've done was published parts of Che's critique of the Soviet Union that Castro has hidden away,printed parts of his congo book and sections from the Bolivian Diary, and more sections from the nine volume Che Guevara writing and speeches then this book would worthy of the title Che Guevara Reader
Correction on page 13 of the chronology.......2000-10-15
Mr. Deutschmann:
On page 13 you write:
"April 1, 1965 Guevara delivers a farewell letter to Fidel Castro.....Guevara operates under the name Tatu, Swahili for "Number two."
I dont know where you got this quote of "Number two." from, but Tatu in Swahili stands for Number three. Number two is Mbiri.
Thank you.
great collection of various guevara speeches and writings.......2000-06-18
this book is a great collection of various writings and speeches by ernesto che guevara. it contains some entries in his diary of the cuban revolution, speeches he gave internationally and in cuba, and letters he wrote to people close to him. it's an interesting collection of his stuff, which is actually pretty hard to get a hold of. so if you see this book, and your interested in che, grab it, because i really had to look around for this one.
Book Description
"Reflects the life of an extraordinary and important man."-Library Journal
"When Che Guevara cast his lot with Marxism and revolution the world of letters suffered an incalculable loss. Guevara is a brilliant, thoughtful writer. He is lucid, candid and revealing."-The Cleveland Press
The dramatic art and acute perceptiveness evident in Che Guevara's early diaries fully blossom in this highly readable and often entertaining account of the guerrilla war that led to the 1959 Cuban Revolution. Reminiscences is one of the two books for Steven Soderbergh's biopic (along with The Bolivian Diary).
Feature chapters describe Che's first meeting with Fidel in Mexico, the mythical moment when Che had to choose between a knapsack of medicine and another of ammunition, and the anguished story of the murdered puppy.
This new, thoroughly revised edition includes for the first time corrections made to the diary by Che himself and a preface by his daughter Aleida about how her parents met in the midst of the revolutionary war.
Customer Reviews:
Enlightening.......2006-06-04
Che goes through memories of the Revolutionary War in Cuba. His writing style is engaging and interesting.
An amazing story.......2004-01-18
This book is great for getting a bird's eye of the Cuban Revolution from an individual perspective. Guevara is meticulous in his notation of events and people. This is not the book to read if you are looking for a general study of the Revolution. Guevara does speak of Castro and Cienfuegos among others but this is Guevara's story. What most impressed me was his honesty about his men, his mistakes, and the conditions under which the Revolution occured. The bugs, the heat, the lack of food, the support from the residents of the Sierra Maestro are so well described that you truly get a sense of what the experience must have been like. Don't pass this book up.
Compelling and instructive.......1999-07-29
This collection of memories conveys the excitement, zeal, possibilities, problems and limitations of Guevara's "guerilla warfare" strategy as it was practiced in the Sierra Maestra. At times, one can almost hear Guevara wheezing as he traverses the rugged terrain. It is, in general, light on ideological substance and heavy on battlefield drama. A classic nonetheless...
The Revolution through Che's eyes.......1998-10-16
This first hand account of the Cuban Revolution through the eyes of Che give the reader the feeling and emotion that Che felt as he wrote these words. We can see and feel the emotion from his words and can see how complex he was. At times he was cruel and hard driving, at others, compassionate and unsure. Good reading for anyone interested in Che
Book Description
Ernesto “Che” Guevara—medical doctor, chess player (he played Bobby Fischer by telephone in 1963), motorcycle rider, president of the Cuban National Bank, ruthless killer—would have celebrated his seventy-fifth birthday this June 14, had he lived. Instead, he was executed in the Bolivian jungle, captured leading a quixotic insurgency, a canonizing death that produced one of the era’s most enduring plaster saints and symbols of revolutionary yearning. He has since been venerated and reviled in dozens of biographies, memoirs, essays, and films. This most photogenic of all revolutionaries (himself a photographer) was also obsessively shot by Fidel’s court photographers —the serendipitous snap by Korda became the most reproduced photo of the age—from the Sierra Maestra to the Congo. Che was a prolific writer, too; and from his youthful Motorcycle Diaries, through nine volumes of essays and speeches, to the journal of his fatal Bolivian adventure, Che as much wrote the revolution as lived it. This anthology contains selections from Fidel Castro, Jon Lee Anderson, Mark Cooper, Regis Debray, Jorge Castaneda, Paco Taibo, Gary Hart (writing as John Blackthorn), Mary-Alice Waters, and many others. In addition, there are rare official and personal documents, letters, diary passages, and 50 black and white photographs.
Customer Reviews:
A True Hero of the Left.......2005-01-08
The fog of time and the strength of anti-anti-Communism have obscured the real Che. Who was he? He was an Argentinian revolutionary who served as Castro's primary thug. He was especially infamous for presiding over summary executions at La Cabaña, the fortress that was his abattoir. He liked to administer the coup de grâce, the bullet to the back of the neck. And he loved to parade people past El Paredón, the reddened wall against which so many innocents were killed. Furthermore, he established the labor-camp system in which countless citizens--dissidents, democrats, artists, homosexuals--would suffer and die. This is the Cuban gulag. A Cuban-American writer, Humberto Fontova, described Guevara as "a combination of Beria and Himmler." Anthony Daniels once quipped, "The difference between [Guevara] and Pol Pot was that [the former] never studied in Paris." - Jay Nordlinger
Excellent.......2004-07-23
This is an excellent book about Che Guevara. The articles have been well chosen from expert contributors such as Jon Lee Anderson, Eduardo Galeano, Alma Guillermoprieto and Guevara himself. The chronological order brings forth the evolution of this remarkable man whose life and sacrifices for his ideal of a just world still haunts our minds. From his "motorcycle diary" days a la Kerouac in the 50's to his death in Bolivia in 1967, yes, we must admit, Che definitile lives.
well chosen selection.......2004-06-28
This book brings together the key writings of someone who is better known by one photograph than everything else about them. Hart has made a careful and thoughtful compendium of the writings that most reveal Ernesto Guevara's thinking, one that changed over the years but always held to its guiding principle: "the real revolutionary is guided by strong feelings of love." Both a good starter or introductory book, and one that can serve as a general reference.
Customer Reviews:
History re-written.......2005-04-28
I liked the detail. However, it would seem that the author has not sought out sufficient sources and readily and far too fully accepts the Che's accounts of the actions. Thus, the Che's machinations and betrayals of fellow rebels are ignored. Minor rebel figures such as Rene Cuervo and the Mexican are not given credit, the contributions of escopeteros and the urban fighters are not really acknowledged. Contributions of major figures such as Huber Matos are apparently minimized. The Che's withdrawal and abandonment to his death of René Ramos Latour is omitted. The effect of communist betrayal on non communist members of M-26-7 and other anti-Batista organizations are not taken into account. It would have been a far more interesting, but less flattering book if the Che's devious and ruthless plots to reach power and remove rivals were clearly pointed out.
An Honest Military Assessment.......2003-10-24
A historical figure like Che Guevara can easily become enshrouded in myth and legend. Much of the material written on him focuses on Che the revolutionary or Che the theorist, but they miss the real point. Guevara was first and foremost a soldier and tactician, and that is the emphasis of Paul J. Dosal's level-headed assessment of Guevara as a military figure.
Dosal takes a hard, honest look at Guevara's contributions to history, eschewing image for substance. When one probes beyond Guevara's vitriolic words against capitalism and imperialism, we find a man impatient with debate and theory, and anxious for decisive action and violence. Instead of a live-saving man trained in medicine, Guevara cast himself as a dealer of death in combat.
The Cuban Revolution is examined, from the first disastrous engagement after landing to the deluge of victories over Batista's tottering regime. Dosal supplies helpful and detailed maps of specific engagements and campaigns (some as small as squad-level) to illustrate the action for his readers. I found the maps to be a welcome addition that allowed me to visualize the engagements as they happened. They also made other engagements easier to imagine, because Che's ambushes usually followed a fairly set pattern.
It is refreshing to read a book that is so solidly concerned with Guevara's actions. While Dosal dwells on the development of Guevara's revolutionary philosophy, he also illuminates his record as a commander. Guevara was a superior tactician among his comrades in the Cuban revolution, but he had no subtlety or finesse in the political arena. This shortcoming steadily hindered his efforts after the victory over Batista: first by angering the USSR and China while ostensibly seeking their support for Third World revolution, and second by alienating any Bolivian allies during his ill-fated campaign there.
Che's modest theoretical efforts are reviewed in detail as well, and Dosal makes no effort to portray these contributions as especially original. Instead he points out that Mao Tse-Tung's writings, as well as those of Lawrence of Arabia, originally covered the field of Guerilla Warfare in more detail. Dosal also highlights how the conditions of the Cuban Revolution were unique. Batista's army was well equipped with weapons, but not with the will to fight. Guevara wrongly assumed that every other undeveloped capitalist/authoritarian regime would crumble just as easily. In fact, many of Guevara's theories are based upon this mistaken belief, and explain his awful performance in Bolivia.
The focus is kept tight throughout, and Dosal's findings are not always flattering. Fidel's miscalculations, especially at the beginning of the campaign, are highlighted. Guevara's bravery and natural tactical abilities in conventional and guerilla warfare are never questioned. But his impulsive, arrogant, impatient, and fatalistic traits come to the fore after the Cuban victory. Dosal covers his ineffectual fiasco in Congo. While the results were not entirely his fault, his naïve belief that African nationalists would embrace an Argentine as their leader was the root of his failure there. Dosal reveals how Guevara persisted long after failure seemed certain, and how it almost cost him his life when he refused to leave.
Special attention is paid to the disastrous Bolivian campaign. Many historians hint that Castro had a hand in Guevara's death, but Dosal effectively argues against the notion. Che's own shortcomings as a politician and planner proved to be the root of his failure and death. His tryst with a possible double agent, lack of planning for an urban support network, and insulting behavior toward Bolivian communist leaders all contributed to Guevara's doom. Guevara also violated most of the principles he articulated in his writings. Dosal's honesty about Guevara's character flaws ultimately make Che a more human, compassionate, and tragic figure than a lionizing biography would have.
Overall, Dosal's work rounded out my already considerable knowledge of this remarkable man. It penetrated through the myths to the man and his actions. I was impressed by the detail of the book. If I could name any fault, it is that events at the end of the Cuban campaign seemed to pass too quickly, without the detailed treatment of other battles. But in Dosal's defense, events did unfold in a virtual landslide pace, and the final military collapse of Batista's regime took little more than a month. Commandante Che is a must-read for anyone interested in Che Guevara as a soldier, tactician, and human, with as many flaws as dreams.
An Honest Military Assessment.......2003-10-24
A historical figure like Che Guevara can easily become enshrouded in myth and legend. Much of the material written on him focuses on Che the revolutionary or Che the theorist, but they miss the real point. Guevara was first and foremost a soldier and tactician, and that is the emphasis of Paul J. Dosal's level-headed assessment of Guevara as a military figure.
Dosal takes a hard, honest look at Guevara's contributions to history, eschewing image for substance. When one probes beyond Guevara's vitriolic words against capitalism and imperialism, we find a man impatient with debate and theory, and anxious for decisive action and violence. Instead of a live-saving man trained in medicine, Guevara cast himself as a dealer of death in combat.
The Cuban Revolution is examined, from the first disastrous engagement after landing to the deluge of victories over Batista's tottering regime. Dosal supplies helpful and detailed maps of specific engagements and campaigns (some as small as squad-level) to illustrate the action for his readers. I found the maps to be a welcome addition that allowed me to visualize the engagements as they happened. They also made other engagements easier to imagine, because Che's ambushes usually followed a fairly set pattern.
It is refreshing to read a book that is so solidly concerned with Guevara's actions. While Dosal dwells on the development of Guevara's revolutionary philosophy, he also illuminates his record as a commander. Guevara was a superior tactician among his comrades in the Cuban revolution, but he had no subtlety or finesse in the political arena. This shortcoming steadily hindered his efforts after the victory over Batista: first by angering the USSR and China while ostensibly seeking their support for Third World revolution, and second by alienating any Bolivian allies during his ill-fated campaign there.
Che's modest theoretical efforts are reviewed in detail as well, and Dosal makes no effort to portray these contributions as especially original. Instead he points out that Mao Tse-Tung's writings, as well as those of Lawrence of Arabia, originally covered the field of Guerilla Warfare in more detail. Dosal also highlights how the conditions of the Cuban Revolution were unique. Batista's army was well equipped with weapons, but not with the will to fight. Guevara wrongly assumed that every other undeveloped capitalist/authoritarian regime would crumble just as easily. In fact, many of Guevara's theories are based upon this mistaken belief, and explain his awful performance in Bolivia.
The focus is kept tight throughout, and Dosal's findings are not always flattering. Fidel's miscalculations, especially at the beginning of the campaign, are highlighted. Guevara's bravery and natural tactical abilities in conventional and guerilla warfare are never questioned. But his impulsive, arrogant, impatient, and fatalistic traits come to the fore after the Cuban victory. Dosal covers his ineffectual fiasco in Congo. While the results were not entirely his fault, his naïve belief that African nationalists would embrace an Argentine as their leader was the root of his failure there. Dosal reveals how Guevara persisted long after failure seemed certain, and how it almost cost him his life when he refused to leave.
Special attention is paid to the disastrous Bolivian campaign. Many historians hint that Castro had a hand in Guevara's death, but Dosal effectively argues against the notion. Che's own shortcomings as a politician and planner proved to be the root of his failure and death. His tryst with a possible double agent, lack of planning for an urban support network, and insulting behavior toward Bolivian communist leaders all contributed to Guevara's doom. Guevara also violated most of the principles he articulated in his writings. Dosal's honesty about Guevara's character flaws ultimately make Che a more human, compassionate, and tragic figure than a lionizing biography would have.
Overall, Dosal's work rounded out my already considerable knowledge of this remarkable man. It penetrated through the myths to the man and his actions. I was impressed by the detail of the book. If I could name any fault, it is that events at the end of the Cuban campaign seemed to pass too quickly, without the detailed treatment of other battles. But in Dosal's defense, events did unfold in a virtual landslide pace, and the final military collapse of Batista's regime took little more than a month. Commandante Che is a must-read for anyone interested in Che Guevara as a soldier, tactician, and human, with as many flaws as dreams.
An Honest Military Assessment.......2003-10-24
A historical figure like Che Guevara can easily become enshrouded in myth and legend. Much of the material written on him focuses on Che the revolutionary or Che the theorist, but they miss the real point. Guevara was first and foremost a soldier and tactician, and that is the emphasis of Paul J. Dosal's level-headed assessment of Guevara as a military figure.
Dosal takes a hard, honest look at Guevara's contributions to history, eschewing image for substance. When one probes beyond Guevara's vitriolic words against capitalism and imperialism, we find a man impatient with debate and theory, and anxious for decisive action and violence. Instead of a live-saving man trained in medicine, Guevara cast himself as a dealer of death in combat.
The Cuban Revolution is examined, from the first disastrous engagement after landing to the deluge of victories over Batista's tottering regime. Dosal supplies helpful and detailed maps of specific engagements and campaigns (some as small as squad-level) to illustrate the action for his readers. I found the maps to be a welcome addition that allowed me to visualize the engagements as they happened. They also made other engagements easier to imagine, because Che's ambushes usually followed a fairly set pattern.
It is refreshing to read a book that is so solidly concerned with Guevara's actions. While Dosal dwells on the development of Guevara's revolutionary philosophy, he also illuminates his record as a commander. Guevara was a superior tactician among his comrades in the Cuban revolution, but he had no subtlety or finesse in the political arena. This shortcoming steadily hindered his efforts after the victory over Batista: first by angering the USSR and China while ostensibly seeking their support for Third World revolution, and second by alienating any Bolivian allies during his ill-fated campaign there.
Che's modest theoretical efforts are reviewed in detail as well, and Dosal makes no effort to portray these contributions as especially original. Instead he points out that Mao Tse-Tung's writings, as well as those of Lawrence of Arabia, originally covered the field of Guerilla Warfare in more detail. Dosal also highlights how the conditions of the Cuban Revolution were unique. Batista's army was well equipped with weapons, but not with the will to fight. Guevara wrongly assumed that every other undeveloped capitalist/authoritarian regime would crumble just as easily. In fact, many of Guevara's theories are based upon this mistaken belief, and explain his awful performance in Bolivia.
The focus is kept tight throughout, and Dosal's findings are not always flattering. Fidel's miscalculations, especially at the beginning of the campaign, are highlighted. Guevara's bravery and natural tactical abilities in conventional and guerilla warfare are never questioned. But his impulsive, arrogant, impatient, and fatalistic traits come to the fore after the Cuban victory. Dosal covers his ineffectual fiasco in Congo. While the results were not entirely his fault, his naïve belief that African nationalists would embrace an Argentine as their leader was the root of his failure there. Dosal reveals how Guevara persisted long after failure seemed certain, and how it almost cost him his life when he refused to leave.
Special attention is paid to the disastrous Bolivian campaign. Many historians hint that Castro had a hand in Guevara's death, but Dosal effectively argues against the notion. Che's own shortcomings as a politician and planner proved to be the root of his failure and death. His tryst with a possible double agent, lack of planning for an urban support network, and insulting behavior toward Bolivian communist leaders all contributed to Guevara's doom. Guevara also violated most of the principles he articulated in his writings. Dosal's honesty about Guevara's character flaws ultimately make Che a more human, compassionate, and tragic figure than a lionizing biography would have.
Overall, Dosal's work rounded out my already considerable knowledge of this remarkable man. It penetrated through the myths to the man and his actions. I was impressed by the detail of the book. If I could name any fault, it is that events at the end of the Cuban campaign seemed to pass too quickly, without the detailed treatment of other battles. But in Dosal's defense, events did unfold in a virtual landslide pace, and the final military collapse of Batista's regime took little more than a month. Commandante Che is a must-read for anyone interested in Che Guevara as a soldier, tactician, and human, with as many flaws as dreams.
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- Separating the myth adds a myth
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Che Guevara: A Biography
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Book Description
Written with great care for truth and balance, this critical, in-depth biography examines the life of the controversial revolutionary and political theoretician.
Customer Reviews:
Separating the myth adds a myth.......2000-05-17
The author tries to separate the myth from the man and does offer some interesting analysis from his cynical viewpoint. But in debunking the myth, his point of view oversteps and creates another myth. The reader must continually weed these opinions from the facts, which he weaves in, back and forth in chronological time, using this device to often repeat his criticism, both real and imagined. Being published in 1969, Daniel James was at the disadvantage of writing soon after the events, but he does manage to make some interesting analysis when he's not too busy alienating Che.
Book Description
The Fall of Che Guevara tells the story of Guevara's last campaign, in the backwoods of Bolivia, where he hoped to ignite a revolution that would spread throughout South America. For the first time, this book shows in detail the strategy of the U.S. and Bolivian governments to foil his efforts. Based on numerous interviews and on secret documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act from the CIA, the State Department, the Pentagon, and the National Security Archive, this work casts new light on the roles of a Green Beret detachment sent to train the Bolivians and of the CIA and other U.S. agencies in bringing Guevara down. Ryan's shows that Guevara was an agent of Cuban foreign policy from the time he met Fidel Castro in 1955 until his death--not a mere independent revolutionary, as many scholars have claimed. Guevara's attempted insurgency in Bolivia was in reality a Cuban attempt to achieve another badly-needed revolutionary success. This dramatic account of the last days of Che Guevara will appeal to scholars and students of United States foreign policy and Latin American history, and to all those interested in this revolutionary's remarkable life.
Customer Reviews:
Very objective look at a relatively obscure episode........1998-11-21
Ryan places Guevara's Bolivian adventure in an historical context that gives it hemispheric significance. As a case study of the US's Latin American counterinsurgency efforts in the 1960s, it demonstrates that the mistakes made in Vietnam were not repeated everywhere. Ryan also attacks some widely held assumptions, including Guevara's diminished ties with Cuba and CIA involvement in his eventual execution. Although objective at all times, this is "history with a heart". Key characters, such as Guevara himself, are brought to life by the author demonstrating not only his mistakes but his tremendous integrity, honor, and determination. A must-read for students of U.S.-Latin American relations during the Cold War.
Average customer rating:
- "Honest, straightforward and audacious"
- A life of solidarity
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At the Side of Che Guevara: Interviews With Harry Villegas (Pombo
Harry Villegas
Manufacturer: Pathfinder Press (NY)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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Pombo: A Man of Che's Guerrilla : With Che Guevara in Bolivia 1966-68
ASIN: 0873488555 |
Customer Reviews:
"Honest, straightforward and audacious".......2006-05-02
"Honest, straightforward and audacious" is how the author describes Che Guevara, the Argentine who along with Fidel Castro led the Cuban revolution to victory. Such description is the polar opposite of the dishonest, double-speaking and cowardly character of imperialist leaders in Che's time: Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon, as well as today: Bush, Clinton and Bush. Some of who used their wealth and privileges to evade the fire of war. All of who glibly sent young people off to slaughter others or be killed while trying to protect the interests of the ruling rich.
This 36-page pamphlet, including the excellent footnotes and photographs, is a wonderful introduction to the Cuban revolution and its foreign policy. It is made up of easy-to-read interviews with "Pombo" - Harry Villegas, brigadier general in the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba who fought alongside Che during the final battles of the Cuban revolution as well as with freedom fighters in the Congo and Bolivia.
Additional reading: Cuba and the Coming American Revolution by Jack Barnes; Our History is still being written by Armando Choy; Capitalism's Long Hot Winter Has Begun by Jack Barnes.
A life of solidarity.......2006-03-19
One way to measure the Cuban Revolution is to look at the women and men it produces. This pamphlet does just that. It both tells us about Harry Villegas's amazing life and gives us a number of his insights. Villegas (also known as Pombo) joined the Revolution as a working class youth in rural Cuba. Since then, his life has been dedicated to world solidarity, frequently risking his life. Pombo served at the side of Che Guevara in Cuba, Africa, and Bolivia. After Che was executed by the CIA, Pombo led a small band of Cubans in a courageous escape from Bolivia. After that, he served in Angola as part of the Cuban force that helped defeat the invasion by apartheid South Africa. What a life! This man and his insights are a true reflection of the Cuban revolution and its incredible record of solidarity with the oppressed. While Amazon may say this book is not available from time to time, it is always available from booksfrompathfinder store listed under new and used at the top of this page.
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- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
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