Todo describe el grosero síntoma de estar en Cuba un verano completo: el sabor del mango en la boca, destilando tópico crudo, yodado, dulce, el mamoncillo resbaloso y la almendra ácida machucada en la acera que ahora huele a tierra mojada. Ya al atardecer, la colisión de un arcoíris salobre te saca del mar a empujones porque el peligro amenazante de los relámpago, la boca cortada por la sal, los dedos engurruñados, los temblores, el hambre y la sed, anuncia que anochece. En la casa te esperan o no…, pero es tarde, hay que salir al mar. 

“Domingo de Revolución” is a poem turned into a novel. It follows Cleo, a Cuban poet that lives in Havana and is currently under suspicion by the Cuban government. At the beginning, Cleo is depressed and alone mourning her parents in her childhood house. Time passes by and she gets interesting news about her poems’ success outside of Cuba. She travels to Mexico and France in different moments and for different reasons, always struggling to get a permit to travel. As a Mexican, I loved reading about the eternal rainy summers of Mexico City and how the light differs from that of Cuba. One day, she meets a beautiful actor that will make her question her entire existence. 

Guerra masters the descriptions of the time not passing in Cuba, even in contrast with the world today. She lets us know the novel takes place in the present because she mentions two precise moments- the death of García Márquez in Mexico and the first conversations between Obama and Raúl Castro. Despite writing with sad notes, she masters certain sarcastic moments including the feeling of being spied on. How certain behaviors change when you know you are being spied on and the moment you stop caring. 

Wendy Guerra has a gift with words. As I was reading, I could feel the ocean’s soft breeze, see how warm light of a summer sun lights up the streets, hear the political gossip of the city and feel Cleo’s frustration and resignation. In a relatively short novel, Guerra crafts such a profound character, I felt I knew her entire life by reading just a fraction of it. The last section of the novel is a compilation of poems written by Cleo. Normally, I don’t read poetry, but I was transformed by these short poems – some are devastating, some are beautiful, and yet all of them have a modern touch that moved me. I found myself reading them over and over again.

About Wendy Guerra

Wendy Guerra was born in Havana in 1970 and at 17 she wrote an award-winning collection of poems. Later, she studied film directing and became an actress for a few years before writing her first novel, Everybody Leaves. This book is based on her life growing up in Cuba and can be found in English. In 2010, she was named Chevalier of the French Order of Arts and Letters. 

Other books written by Cuban women

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Cuban initiatives and projects that support and empower girls and women

Roots of Hope

It was hard to find a Cuban organization that promoted girls’ and women’s empowerment, but Roots of Hope is a non profit organization help Cuban youth and help them achieve a better future. They help young Cubans live a day without repression, move freely through the island and have normal lives. They organize fundraising events such as concerts with Grammy winners and other celebrities to raise awareness, they distributed cellphones and USB drives to Cuban youth and coordinate National Youth Leadership Conferences in prestigious universities of the United States.