Yiddish-speaking Jews thought Cuba was supposed to be a mere layover on the journey to the United States when they arrived in the island country in the 1920s. They even called it "Hotel Cuba." But as the years passed, the many Jews who came there from war-torn Europe remained, and the beloved island ceased to be a hotel and eventually became "home." Then Fidel Castro came to power in 1959. The majority of the Jews soon broke with his communist regime and left in a mass exodus. Though they remade their lives in the United States, they mourned the loss of the Jewish community they had built.
As a child of five, Ruth Behar was caught up in the Jewish exodus from Cuba. Growing up in the United States, she wondered about those who remained. "An Island Called Home" is the story of Behar's return to learn about the people who are keeping Judaism alive in Cuba today. Unlike the exotic image projected by the American media, Behar uncovers a side of Cuban Jews that is poignant and personal. Her poetic and passionate vignettes of those she meets are coupled with the sensitive photographs of Havana-based photographer Humberto Mayol, whose shadowy and riveting images create an unforgettable portrait of a community that many have seen though few have understood.
In the words of Sandra Cisneros, author of Caramelo, ""Ruth Behar's" An Island Called Home "is a kaddish, an offering, dedicated to the exiles and to the children of the exiles and forthose wandering still, searching for their homes. May they 'not be given up for lost.'""
Industry Reviews
"Traversing the island, Behar becomes a confidante to a myriad of Jewish strangers. Through one-on-one interviews and black-and-white images taken by her photographer, Humberto Mayol, she uncovers the diasporic thread that connects Cuban Jews....This diligent recounting and pictorial collage of interviews with adolescents, the aging, the impoverished and the political by Behar preserves in memory the people and places that make up Cuba's Jewish story." * Publishers Weekly *
"An Island Called Home is a snapshot of Cuban Jewish life and well worth a read by anyone interested in the beloved but mystifying island so close to home in America" -- Miriam Bradman Abrahams * Jewish Book Council *
"Traversing the island, Behar becomes a confidante to a myriad of Jewish strangers. Through one-on-one interviews and black-and-white images taken by her photographer, Humberto Mayol, she uncovers the diasporic thread that connects Cuban Jews....This diligent recounting and pictorial collage of interviews with adolescents, the aging, the impoverished and the political by Behar preserves in memory the people and places that make up Cuba's Jewish story." * Publishers Weekly *
A fascinating and vital memoir about a rarely glimpsed cultural force in Cuba; both personal and far-reaching. An Island Called Home digs deep to reveal new things about the collective soul of the Cubans. -- Oscar Hijuelos * author of The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love *
This may be Behar's most personal work...she lovingly intertwines her own thoughts and feelings with the more analytical observations of her profession. The result: a narrative that tugs at the heart. * Miami Herald *
"A nostalgic look at Cuban Jews, now and then. . . . her supple text is supplemented by the vivid photographs of Cuban photographer Humberto Mayol." * Canadian Jewish News *
The book offers a brief historical introduction and an excellent chronology that tell why and how Jews from all over Europe and the Middle East flocked to Cuba in the early years of the twentieth century. This book tells as much about the author as it does about the Jews of Cuba. Behar has spent her life considering herself an outsider. As an academicshe has pursued that posture studying different cultures, hiding her Jewish identity, and wondering where she could take root. In this, her sixth book, Behar reveals the child whose roots are photographs in a suitcase. In Cuba she finds a home. Her tenacity in documenting even the smallest and most distant communities makes this study valuable. * Shofar *
"An Island Called Home is a snapshot of Cuban Jewish life and well worth a read by anyone interested in the beloved but mystifying island so close to home in America" -- Miriam Bradman Abrahams * Jewish Book Council *
