My Early Years

by Fidel Castro, Deborah Shnookal (Editor), Pedro Alvarez Tabmo (Editor)

An exclusive collection of Fidel Castro’s own remarkably frank writings about his formative years. This new, expanded edition, featuring a brilliant introductory essay by Gabriel García Márquez, includes previously unpublished personal reflections by the Cuban president. “We have no doubt that he will make a brilliant name for himself. Fidel has what it takes and will make something of himself.”—From Fidel Castro’s final school report, 1945. “Fidel Castro’s autobiography in the form of personal sketches offering a glimpse of him as a young boy and as a young rebel . . . Fascinating reading.”— Midwest Book Review Also available in Spanish as Fidel en la memorio del joven que es (ISBN 1-876175-16-8)

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Politics, Memoir

194 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1998

About the author

Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro overthrew the regime of Fulgencio Batista y Zaldívar in 1959, established a Communist state, served as prime minister until 1976 and then as president of the government and first secretary of the party, in declining health passed control de facto in 2006 to Raúl Castro, his younger brother, and officially retired in 2008.

Fidel Castro led a revolutionary movement that overthrew corrupt authoritarian regime of Fulgencio Batista y Zaldívar on New Year's Day, 1 January 1959.

Raúl Castro assisted Fidel Castro, his brother, in overthrowing the regime of Fulgencio Batista y Zaldívar in 1959.

United States in an attempt to overthrow the government of Fidel Castro trained a force of 1,500 guerrilla troops, who landed at Bay of Pigs, the site, in an ill-fated invasion on 17 April 1961.

Castro, the illegitimate son of a wealthy farmer, adopted leftist anti-imperialist politics and meanwhile studied law at the University of Havana. He participated in rebellions against right wing in the Dominican Republic and Colombia, afterward failed in an attack on the barracks of Moncada, planned against the military junta, which the United States of America backed, and served imprisonment for a year in 1953. On release, he went to Mexico, formed the movement of 26 July as a group with Ernesto Guevara, his friend and doctor.

Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz, a politician, also served as the commander in chief of the armed forces. This politically Marxist-Leninist administered the socialist republic. People nationalized industry and businesses and implemented socialist reforms in all parts of society. Castro returned, ousted rivals in 1959, and brought his own assumption of military and political power.

Credentials of Castro and cordial relations with the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics alarmed the Administrations of Dwight David Eisenhower and John Fitzgerald Kennedy, who unsuccessfully attempted economic blockade, assassination, and even the invasion at Bay of Pigs of 1961 to remove him. In 1961, Castro proclaimed the socialist nature of his administration under rule of its kind in the Western Hemisphere. The press and suppression of internal dissent accompanied socialist reforms that introduced central economic planning and expanded care and education.

Castro countered these threats, formed an economic and military alliance with the Soviets, allowed them to place nuclear weapons on the island, and thus sparked sparking the missile crisis in 1962.

Internationally, Castro also served as general of the nonaligned movement from 1979 to 1983.

Abroad, Castro supported foreign groups in the expectation of toppling world capitalism, sent troops to fight in the wars of Yom Kippur, Ogaden, and Angola.

Following the dissolution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in 1991, Castro went into economic "special period" and afterward forged alliances in the Latin American pink tide, namely with Venezuela of Hugo Chávez, and joined the Bolivarian alliance in 2006.

Due to failing, Castro in 2006 transferred his responsibilities to his vice, who assumed in 2008.

Supporters lauded Castro, a controversial and divisive world figure, as a champion of socialism, humanitarianism, and environmentalism against imperialism; critics viewed him as a dictator, who oversaw multiple rights abuses, an exodus of more than a million persons, and the impoverishment of the economy of the country. Through actions and writings, he significantly influenced the politics of various individuals and groups across the world.

Reviews

[Robert · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not much here, a little about his growing up and how he became a revolutionary. But incites into the real Fidel are few. His father was a peasant Spaniard who came to Cuba during the Spanish-American War and later became a landowner. There were cockfights on the family grounds. He mixed with the peasants, knew hunger, and felt emphathy for the poor. His mother was very religious but although he went to Jesuit schools he didn't become religious because the priests were too dogmatic. He needed to see things rationally. He made good grades but often crammed. He was an athlete and enjoyed sports. The book is small and mainly reprints interviews given by Fidel to various people. I suspect he didn't really want to say much. By college he was a revolutionary. Cuba was run by dictators and was corrupt. He began organizing against the authorities. In 1953, he led a small army against a government post and was put in prison. He spent the time in confinement reading books like He tells how his time in prison allowed him to read many books, mostly philosophy like Marx's Das Kapital and Hugo's Les Miserables. His foundations in communism were pretty much set. After prison he exiled to Mexico and came back to begin the struggle against Batista. The outline is there but the whys and hows aren't. I'm reading more about him to fill in the blanks. I'm doing this for research for my next book.

[bojfischer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Saya bisa menilai Fidel Castro hampir seperti Nabi. Tetapi Ia hanya manusia biasa yang memiliki semangat kepemimpinan profetik. Saya tidak tahu dan tidak peduli misi transendensinya, Fidel punya dua yang jelas; humanisasi dan liberalisasi.

Seperti judulnya, buku ini tidak menjelaskan secara mendalam pandangan politik dan ekonomi Fidel Castro. Hanya narasi-narasi kehidupan semasa kanak-kanak, Mahasiswa, hingga mengikuti beberapa revolusi di luar Kuba sebelum mewujudkannya di Kuba. Penekanan penting di buku ini; Ia menentang bentuk-bentuk penindasan dan bagaimana pendidikan sangat penting.

Hampir seperti buku motivasi. Kalau anda membutuhkan patron atau inspirator, Fidel bisa menjadi sosok pilihan.

[Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excerpts from interviews and Fidel's speeches about his early years, with a focus on the growth of his political consciousness and how he came to the conclusion that Marxism-Leninism is the correct ideology of struggle for the liberation of Cuba and Latin America. Some really worthwhile stuff in here, including important nuggets about why he organized outside of the Communist Party of Cuba initially, the importance of sacrifice in the struggle for liberation, bits of his prison letters, etc.

Minor criticisms: The book returns to the topic of religion a lot (some will find value there), and there are some places where it could have benefited from editing for publishing rather than leaving the text as a straight transcription of speech, but that's a fine line to walk.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a memoir or an autobiography, but rather recollections of his early life pulled from interviews, letters and speeches. Fascinating to explore Fidel's interest in revolutions prior to exposure to Marx, as he kept a close eye on what happened in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic (as well as Columbia and Venezuela.) Definitely a scholar/historian who became a revolutionary, as he culled ideas from different sources and was active in systemic change. Became radicalized into thinking more about communism (as a revolutionary idea) when he shifted his focus solely on Cuba.

[Marianne van der Heijden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interessante collectie uittreksels uit interviews en speeches over wat Fidel zelf zegt over zijn jeugd. Fascinerend om te lezen hoe hij al jong vasthoudend en strategisch te werk ging om gedaan te krijgen wat hij wilde. Goed om te lezen hoe zo'n indrukwekkende revolutie door een persoon kon worden opgezet en georganiseerd. Hoe hij steeds probeerde en er in slaagde anderen mee te krijgen met zijn ideeën en acties.

[Shane Westfall · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one, but still couldn't give it more than three stars. Rather than an autobiography of any sort, it contains the transcripts of various speeches where Fidel talks about his early years. An excellent resource offering unique insights into the man yet as a book it came across as a hastily thrown together project, the literary equivalent of an album of b-sides and outtakes.

[srdjan]

Condemn me. It does not matter. History will absolve me

[Sanjana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as comprehensive as I thought it would be. However, a few essays in here were quite interesting.