Synopses & Reviews
Cuba has regularly given Washington a headache, Lars Schoultz observes in his comprehensive chronicle of U.S. policy toward the Cuban Revolution. Seeking relief, even the most patient U.S. officials have often been tempted to repeat what an exasperated President Theodore Roosevelt told a friend in 1906: "I am so angry with that infernal little Cuban republic that I would like to wipe its people off the face of the earth."
Certainly that has been true since 1959, when a group of rebels led by Fidel Castro ousted Fulgencio Batista, a dictator known for his friendly ties to the United States, and proceeded to cause more trouble than anyone could have imagined. Using a rich array of documents and firsthand interviews with U.S. and Cuban officials, Schoultz tells the story of the attempts and failures of ten U.S. administrations to end the Cuban Revolution. He covers everything from the legendary 1960s plot to assassinate Castro using a rigged ballpoint pen to the message that recently ran across the electronic billboard of the U.S. interests section in Havana: "Communism doesn't work because people like to own stuff"--a comment attributed to the late rocker Frank Zappa.
Schoultz argues that despite the overwhelming advantage in size and power that the United States enjoys over its neighbor, the Cubans' historical insistence on their right to self-determination has inevitably irritated American administrations, influenced both U.S. domestic politics and foreign policy, and led to a freeze in diplomatic relations of unprecedented longevity. Schoultz's analysis illuminates what has been a highly unproductive foreign policy and points to fresh prospects as a new century of U.S.-Cuban relations begins.
Review
"[Schoultz lets] the principal actors speak for themselves. . . . to provide a fly-on-the-wall perspective to Washington policymaking."
-Centre Daily Times
Review
"The Obama administration would be wise to consider Schoultz's latest book essential reading. . . . This impressive book is highly recommended."
-Library Journal starred review
Review
"Anyone with an interest in U.S. foreign relations will appreciate Schoultz's careful historical detail, readable narrative and clear analysis."
-McClatchy-Tribune News Service
Review
"The definitive history of US foreign policy toward revolutionary Cuba."
-Clio
Review
"Offers a more nuanced and potentially enlightening window upon the main obstacle to better US relations in the region. . . . Valuable."
-The Latin American Review of Books
Review
"An . . . eminently readable account of Cuban-American relations over the past century. . . . A deeply frustrating tale, chronicled with skill by a fine historian."
-Times Literary Supplement
Review
"An excellent book. . . . Will become a major reference work on US policy toward Cuba."
-The Sacramento Book Review
Review
"Anyone interested in the Cuban Revolution of 1959 and its aftermath will find this book to be a must read."
-Colonial Latin American Historical Review
Review
"[A] comprehensive analysis of the longstanding failed American policies toward our Cuban neighbor."
'" Our Man in Boston
Review
"Schoultz found all kinds of mind-boggling memos, candid phone recordings, and wacky schemes while he was researching his latest book."
-Endeavors
Review
"Anyone with an interest in U.S. foreign relations will appreciate Schoultz's careful historical detail, readable narrative and clear analysis."
-McClatchy-Tribune News Service
Review
"This narrative history of a century of US policy towards Cuba is impressively researched and splendidly written. It becomes the instant standard on its subject. Its emphasis is on US policy since the late 1950s, its sources are principally US archives, and its sweep is comprehensive. Schoultz has a knack for identifying in the historical record the telling phrase, the apt metaphor, the outrageous statement and the powerful insight."
-Journal of Latin American Studies
Review
"Schoultz [writes] with insightful verve in
That Infernal Little Cuban Republic, a comprehensive history of US-Cuba relations since World War II.""
-The Nation
Review
"[This] book is delicious to read, and will inform, entertain and challenge a non-specialist public as well as a more scholarly one."
-Canadian Journal of History
About the Author
Lars Schoultz is the William Rand Kenan Jr. Professor of Political Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a past president of the Latin American Studies Association.
Table of Contents
"Schoultz has an unparalleled grasp of U.S. sources--from government documents to Congressional records, unpublished memoirs and interviews with protagonists American and Cuban. His analysis is lucid and thought-provoking, and he writes exceedingly well. Reading the book is a pleasure. It is, by far, the best book on U.S. relations with Castro's Cuba. . . . A superb book."
-American Historical Review "A monumental study of U.S.-Cuba relations . . . based on an extensive use of primary sources. It will undoubtedly become an indispensable tool for anyone interested in this topic."
-The Journal of American History "Prodigious research across many archives has produced a tour de force that will stand as the field's preeminent diplomatic history until the papers of the most recent U.S. presidents (and perhaps also of Cuba's leaders) become available sometime in the future."
-Latin American Research Review "This magisterial volume will become the new standard account of U.S.-Cuban relations. . . . Lucid and witty, filled with penetrating observations. . . . A delight to read. . . . Indispensable."
-Hispanic American Historical Review "That Infernal Little Cuban Republic is a superb chronicle of and commentary on the history of U.S.-Cuba relations. Lars Schoultz explains U.S. Cuba policy as, on balance, a failure. Tellingly, the profound depth of that failure since the end of the Cold War shames the great majority of U.S. citizens, including this one, for tolerating such special interest folly disguised in the cloak of freedom and democracy."--Lawrence B. Wilkerson, Visiting Harriman Professor of Government and Public Policy at the College of William and Mary, former chief of staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell "The Obama administration would be wise to consider Schoultz's latest book essential reading. . . . This impressive book is highly recommended."
-Library Journal starred review "Anyone with an interest in U.S. foreign relations will appreciate Schoultz's careful historical detail, readable narrative and clear analysis."
-McClatchy-Tribune News Service "Schoultz [writes] with insightful verve in That Infernal Little Cuban Republic, a comprehensive history of US-Cuba relations since World War II.""
-The Nation "An approachable, deeply satisfying narrative with a clear-eyed and persuasive critique of U.S. policy toward Cuba and, more broadly, of U.S. policy toward any weaker nation that has ever stubbornly asserted its sovereignty. . . . A page turner. . . . A gripping, expertly told story of one of the most complicated foreign policy relationships in the western hemisphere."
-Publishers Weekly starred review "The detail, the vivid writing, the close focus on decision makers, and the wealth of new information combine to make a terrific book for scholars, students, tourists, and policy makers. This book should become the standard reference work on U.S. policy toward Cuba."--Philip Brenner, American University "Offers a more nuanced and potentially enlightening window upon the main obstacle to better US relations in the region. . . . Valuable."
-The Latin American Review of Books "The United States has normal relations with China and Vietnam. Why not with Cuba? As Lars Schoultz so well sums it up in his excellent and highly readable book, it is because the United States cannot get over its obsessive uplifting mentality, i.e., the belief that it is the sacred duty of the United States to uplift the Cuban people. Even most Cubans who want change believe they must seek it on their own. Schoultz expresses no optimism that the United States will get over its obsession any time soon."-Wayne S. Smith, former Chief of the U.S. Interests Section in Havana (1979-82) "An excellent book. . . . Will become a major reference work on US policy toward Cuba."
-The Sacramento Book Review "The definitive history of US foreign policy toward revolutionary Cuba."
-Clio "[Schoultz lets] the principal actors speak for themselves. . . . to provide a fly-on-the-wall perspective to Washington policymaking."
-Centre Daily Times "An . . . eminently readable account of Cuban-American relations over the past century. . . . A deeply frustrating tale, chronicled with skill by a fine historian."
-Times Literary Supplement "Anyone interested in the Cuban Revolution of 1959 and its aftermath will find this book to be a must read."
-Colonial Latin American Historical Review "[A] comprehensive analysis of the longstanding failed American policies toward our Cuban neighbor."
-Our Man in Boston "Schoultz found all kinds of mind-boggling memos, candid phone recordings, and wacky schemes while he was researching his latest book."
-Endeavors "This narrative history of a century of US policy towards Cuba is impressively researched and splendidly written. It becomes the instant standard on its subject. Its emphasis is on US policy since the late 1950s, its sources are principally US archives, and its sweep is comprehensive. Schoultz has a knack for identifying in the historical record the telling phrase, the apt metaphor, the outrageous statement and the powerful insight."
-Journal of Latin American Studies