The Cigar Roller: A Novel

by Pablo Medina

Master storyteller Pablo Medina's The Cigar Roller is a radiant novel recounting the life of Cuban master cigar roller Amadeo Terra. A proud and capricious man, tobacco has been the center of Amadeo's life, the source of his passion. For his considerable talents with the leaves he had been forgiven a great number of sins. An imperious patriarch of enormous appetites, Amadeo now lies in a Florida hospital after a stroke looks back at his previously unexamined life. One day Nurse feeds him mango from a baby-food jar-a change from the tasteless mush he frequently rejects with defiance-and the taste brings memories of his life in Havana flooding back to him. He recalls his turbulent, passionate relationship with his wife Julia, his numerous romantic transgressions, the three sons he's kept at a distance, the political strife that forced his family to relocate from Cuba to Florida, and finally the tragedy that he's kept locked away. The Cigar Roller is a tour de force, an evocative, humorous and endearing and portrait of a once robust man who, at the end of his imperfect life, clamors for some dignity and grace as he comes to terms with his regrets.

Genres: Fiction, Novels, Latin American

192 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2005

Reviews

[Jailynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel like this book is definitely not everyone's cup of tea but it was mine. It goes from flashbacks to the present without a clear transition, events are not in chronological order, and there aren't quotation marks for any of the dialogues. Now, none of this bothered me because I saw how it was intended. This is an old man who has become limited and all he can do now is think back on his life. Of course, his memories are triggered by certain events or desires and he describes another past bit of his life for you. I found the language of his struggle powerful. The anger and desperation he felt daily came through so well. This sack of dying flesh is not who he wanted to turn into but all he can think about is who he really was and if this life is now his punishment. I was emotional throughout the book because of his condition but I couldn't feel sorry for the man himself. Wonderful read.

[Christopherseelie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastic little novel about a Cuban patriarch looking back upon his life and deeds for the first time. The plot unfolds much like Johnny Got His Gun. The narrator cannot speak, move, or control his bodily functions after having a stroke. The settings of the Cuban countryside, Havana, Ybor City in Tampa, and the nursing home meld, as do the female characters that populate the narrator's memory. I suspect there is a tradition in Spanish-language literature for the deathbed confession. The Cigar Roller follows these tropes in poetic ways, but refuses the usual ending.

[Marius van Blerck · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Cigar Roller is both tedious and pedantic. The publisher describes this book as a tour de force, which rather leads one to question the rest of their catalogue.

[C.T. Liotta · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Cigar Roller," by Pablo Medina, is the story of Amadeo Terra, a former Cigar roller trapped in a dying body after a stroke. Unable to communicate or move or control his functions, he remains aware of everything around him and reflects on a past for which there will never be absolution.

It is written in lush, literary prose, and I was able to get lost in the language. So, a credit to Medina for that! Had he written a phone directory in such a manner, I'd have read it from cover to cover.

Yet, I found myself drifting and often bored. Terra's life, told in flashback, simply wasn't very engaging. He had an affair, but nothing particularly interesting happened. His wife found out and there was an altercation, but it wasn't particularly fascinating. My coworker had a more interesting tryst. Terra's life as a quadriplegic is often more gripping than his life in flashback.

Books about ordinary characters work for me when little things happen that seem enormous in the context of their ordinary worlds. I never particularly felt a high degree of awe or conflict, external or internal, in flashback.

So, it's a beautifully-told story of a rather ordinary, unlikable man with huge appetites but who is, at the end of the day, workaday and dull. The characters that surround Terra are a bit more interesting. I would love Medina to write a book about Sor Diminuta, a nun who bathes him.

Even if this isn't a favorite, I would be happy to read more from Medina. I wasn't ensorcelled by this particular story, but I'm happy to have discovered him as an author.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Amadeo Terra can do nothing but remember."

Amadeo isn't a man that people admire, but he survived long enough to have more than a few good times ... until a stroke renders him paralyzed. He's trapped in his head, in his memories, and he's dying. Here, we get to see the last few weeks of his life: his real time struggles and his string of past regrets.

[Urmi Maitra · Rating 1 out of 5]

There is a fine line between extremely graphic and straight up disgusting, which the author clearly does not understand, or does not care about. I thought this would be the story of the cigar roller's life but that comprised less than half of the book. Most of it was just what felt like half-conscious ramblings.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reminded me of "Memories of My Melancholy Whores" by Gabriel Garcia Márquez. An old man reflecting on his past. Although this guy is way less likeable, I enjoyed reading about his life.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Warren wilson prof! Loved the luscious language and sexual metaphor.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

liked it

[Libby Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

heartbreakingly beautiful

Having recently visited Cuba, both Havana and the rural, tobacco-growing west, I was drawn by the title of this novel. It was not quite what I expected. It was better. Medina’s descriptions of Ibor City in Tampa, and of Havana and Pinar del Rio, are so compelling. The protagonist’s dilemma is horrifyingly real, as memories of his life and realities of the nursing home where he is dying slowly are revealed and those thoughts are intertwined and confused. I’ll remember this book for a long time.

[Purlewe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would like to say this was a fascinating read. The descriptions of Cuba and Tampa and life as a cigar roller were so rich. The story of a man trapped in his body in a nursing home, reliving his life and not being able to speak is compelling. The problem is that he was a despicable man. He could remember with amazing detail and the language in the narrative really has such depth. But if you find despicable men who do despicable deeds and then care less for the damage they bring beyond comprehension, then do not read this book.

On the other hand, this book was narrated by Stefan Rudniki beautifully. His voice was a balm. His accent and the beauty of his voice brought the most wonderful sentences out of this book and planted them at your feet like gifts. If you want to hear a beautiful Latin accent and swoon.. I highly recommend him. He made the story more than bearable.. he made it interesting.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Be warned there is no dialogue in this book, though still beautifully written. The style reminded me of "If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things" in that the narrative winds its way through to a climax of details of a tragic event.

[Ann · Rating 1 out of 5]

I give this book an A for concept, but an F for execution
FYI: The movie Mar Adentro (The Sea Within) based on a real life story deals with a similar plot point (being quadriplegic) in a much more provocative&engaging manner

[Anika · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poignant, sad, realistic, poetic.

[Jay · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought it had promise to be a good book, but it felt too disjointed for me to enjoy.

[Missy Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

About the cuban immigrants in Tampa and the cultural of the cigar rolling industry.

[Ryann · Rating 2 out of 5]

An odd, stream of consciousness flashback short novel.