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Cargando... Nocturno de La Habanapor T. J. English
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Inscríbete en LibraryThing para averiguar si este libro te gustará. Actualmente no hay Conversaciones sobre este libro. Cuba, in the early part of the 20th century, after its liberation from Spain, was wide open for exploitation and money-making by capitalists. Sugar cane, oil, and minerals were there to be had, if you liberally greased the palms of the politicos. P.xiv: "such was the extent of American interest in Cuba that this island, roughly the size of the state of Tennessee, ranked in third place among the nations of the world receiving U.S. investments. "The financial largesse that flooded Cuba could have been used to address the country's festering social problems. Hunger, illiteracy, subhuman housing, a high infant mortality rate, and the disposition of small farmers had been facts of Life in Cuba throughout the island's turbulent history." The mob in the U.S. had always dreamed of a "mobster haven" where they could run prostitution, nightclubs, casinos, etc that would generate huge income, and with a benevolent government for a business partner. Cuba in Batista's government fit the bill. In 1946, the mob bosses met in Havana to discuss putting together the endeavor. Apparently, they didn't believe in eating produce, grains, and beans; hundreds of Animals were murdered for their appetites: P.33: "the first night, the group eschewed business and met at a special banquet room on the lower level of the hotel. A gourmet feast was prepared, made up mostly of local dishes. There were crab and queen conch enchiladas brought from the southern archipelago. For the main course, there was a choice of roast breast of flamingo, tortoise stew, roast tortoise with lemon and garlic, and crayfish, oysters, and grilled swordfish from the nearby fishing village of cojímar. There was also grilled venison sent by a government Minister from Camagüey who owned livestock and, the most obscure delicacy of all, grilled Manatee. The guest drank añejo RuM and smoked Montecristo cigars." sin reseñas | añadir una reseña
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Para los líderes de los bajos fondos Meyer Lansky y Charles "Lucky" Luciano, Cuba era la mejor esperanza para el futuro del crimen organizado norteamericano en los años posteriores a la Prohibición. En la década de 1950, la mafia --con el gobierno de Fulgencio Batista en su bolsillo-- era la dueña de los hoteles de lujo y los casinos más grandes de La Habana, empezando un boom turístico sin precedentes, con los entretenimientos más extravagantes, las estrellas más famosas, las mujeres más hermosas y juego en abundancia. Pero los sueños de los mafiosos chocaron con los de Fidel Castro, Che Guevara y otros que dirigieron una insurrección del pueblo contra el gobierno de Batista y sus socios extranjeros-- una épica batalla cultural que es capturada en este libro en toda su atractiva, decadente y espantosa gloria. No se han encontrado descripciones de biblioteca. |
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This is a fascinating look at Cuba just before Castro rose to power.
Havana in the 1950s was a steamy, beautiful, sexy city. Batista was in control of Cuba and the mob was in control of Havana with intentions of turning it into a Monte Carlo-like playground just off America's shore. This book brings 1950s and '60s American and Cuban politics to life but reads like great crime fiction. I couldn't put it down. The author explains how the mob came to build great, glittering casinos in Havana and writes about the movie stars and American politicians who befriended the mobsters and frequented those casinos. The wild nightlife of Havana is sharply contrasted with a poorer Cuba outside the city where we learn of the rise of Castro and his revolutionaries and their many attempts to come to power.
I knew little about Cuba and its history before reading Havana Nocturne. However, this book piqued my interest in this neighboring island that the US still blockades. If you liked The Godfather, I think you'll love this true story and learn some history in the process. I highly recommend it.
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