In Cuba I Was a German Shepherd - Softcover

Menéndez, Ana

Softcover

ISBN 10: 080213887X ISBN 13: 9780802138873

Publisher: Grove Press / Atlantic Monthly Press, 2002

Synopsis

This Pushcart Prize-winning story--a masterpiece of humor and heartbreak--unfolds a series of family snapshots that illuminate the landscape of an exiled community rich in heritage, memory, and longing for the past. At once "tender and sharp-fanged" ("L.A. Weekly").

About this title

Review:

[A] remarkable debut collection... [from] a woman on the verge of a significant literary career (Herald)

'A raucous, heartfelt debut. In a series of interrelated stories, Menendez delves into the conflicted heart of a community whose divisions are legendary. Deft, talented and hilarious, Menenedez is a splendid discovery' Junot Diaz

'The narrative of the long Cuban odyssey unfolds, resulting in an exile both angry and poignant with longing.Menendez captures the weight of these forced exiles' frustrations and misbegotten dreams... By the time she reaches the last story, Menendez is conjuring up Eugene O'Neill-like drama... [She makes] the Cuban exile ordeal come alive and pluck the chord of universal feeling. A pointed rendering of the human need to idealize what WAS in order to live with what IS' Kirkus Reviews

'IN CUBA I WAS A GERMAN SHEPHERD is not simply about Cuba and the Castro-induced Cuban diaspora, though there is much rich insight here into all of that. The fact is, Ana Menendez is a true artist, and so her collection of stories is deeply resonant into the human condition. She speaks to us all as we search for a place in the world and a way to define the self. This is a remarkable and important book' Robert Olen Butler

'The warm and fragrant stories in Ana Menendez's first collection join the two separate worlds of her characters - the lost heaven of Cuba and the limbo of Miami - but with a gentle and saving humour. IN CUBA I WAS A GERMAN SHEPHERD uses the power of memory to assuage impossible losses' Stewart O'Nan

'An exquisitely crafted volume. A world of nostalgia, humor, love and magic populated by a rich cast of warmly human characters. I think I left a chunk of my heart there! This is a remarkably mature first work by a writer of great promise' Breyten Bretenbach, South African author of TRUE CONFESSIONS OF AN ALBINO TERRORIST

'Journalist and Pushcart Prize winner Ana Menendez absorbs us into the whirlwind existence of her Cuban characters that are culturally stranded in Miami... Subtle and evocative moments... define this vivid short story collection' Urban Latino Magazine

'Even better [than other impressive entries is] Ana Menendez's deeply sympathetic picturing of culture-shocked Latin American refugees in Miami' From a Kirkus Reviews starred revies of THE BEST NEW AMERICAN VOICES 2000, edited by Tobias Wolff (Harcourt, 11/00)

'The quality of the work showcased here is world class... The opening story, 'In Cuba, I was a German Shepherd' by Ana Menendez, is a litany of humorous anecdotes zeroing in on the plight of wealthy and educated Cubans who fled to the U.S. only to find their credentials useless and menial employment their only way of surviving... While unfamiliar names today, these voices are likely to show up in BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES and THE O.HENRY PRIZE STORIES in years to come' From a Publishers Weekly review of THE BEST NEW AMERICAN VOICES 2000, edited by Tobias Wolff

'[A] powerful debut collection of stories: stories that not only convey the bittersweet mood of exile but also give us a wonderful gallery of idiosyncratic characters whose lives overlap to create a sense of shared history, shared losses... Ana Menendez has made a bright debut that points to even brighter accomplishments to come' New York Times

Book Description:

'A raucous, heartfelt debut... Menendez is a splendid discovery' Junot Diaz, bestselling author of DROWN

About this edition

• Publisher: Grove Press / Atlantic Monthly Press
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 080213887X
• ISBN 13: 9780802138873
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 240