Remembering Che

July 23, 2012
Che Guevara's widow continues her work to help folks see her late husband as a "real person," and not just a symbol of political revolution, in this slim but poignant memoir. Using stark prose, and without getting overly sentimental, she effectively shows Guevara as a man with "great dreams" and a "creative spirit," who in addition to being an effective political leader, was a husband, lover, poet, and father of five. It's the first time March has written about her relationship with Guevara, who mere months after they met "declared his love" while the two sat alone in a military jeep. "Looking back, I think Che didn't exactly choose the best moment to declare his love." Perhaps there are no "best" moments for a couple during a revolution, but as the never-before-published letters and family photos show, the two clearly had many loving and intimate ones. The letters also help to portray another, less self-assured Guevara, as he writes in regard to his children with March: "How difficult it will be for them one day to love me like a father and not regard me as some distant monster they are obliged to love." Comprised of what March calls her "most cherished memories," the book is both a love story and a new, engaging perspective on the Cuban Revolution and one of its iconic leaders. Photos.

Starred review from May 15, 2012

Argentine doctor and revolutionary Che Guevara married the Cuban March in 1959 as Castro's revolutionaries were solidifying their hold on Cuba's government. Their story, first published in Spanish in 2008, is told from March's perspective in an often remarkable look at the figure many 20th-century idealists consider history's greatest revolutionary. Married only eight years before Che's death in Bolivia in 1967, the couple had four children. March's narrative--romantic, courageous, and insightful--is powerful and noteworthy for the author's honesty and commitment to rebellion and revolution. March relates her daily life of danger and fear among the targets of the Batista regime, and her reflections on Castro and other revolutionary leaders make for first-rate history. She does not address Che's brutality and ruthlessness toward perceived traitors, but what does come across is a love story against the backdrop of revolution. Countless family pictures and samples of Che's personal writings highlight an exciting addition to the literature of Che, Castro, and the Cuban revolution. VERDICT For all readers--whether specialists or general readers--not fluent in Spanish but interested in Che and the history of Cuba, America's millstone.--Boyd Childress, formerly with Auburn Univ. Lib., AL

Copyright 2012 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2012
March was Guevara's second wife and the mother of four of his five children. After four decades of chosen silence, she reveals in her memoir many interesting and sometimes surprising aspects of her life and her life with Guevara. She was raised in a rural section of Las Villas province, and she aspired to become a teacher. Like many youthful and idealistic Cubans, she despised the Batista dictatorship, so joining the July 26th underground resistance seemed a moral imperative. Her account of her activities, primarily gathering and conveying information, is harrowing and inspiring. Her meeting with Guevara and the flowering of their relationship are recounted with emotion, but she avoids excessive sentimentality. March understandably ignores some of Guevara's unpleasant traits, including his ideological rigidity and his intolerance for the failures of others. Still, the inclusion of previously unpublished letters to her show a seldom-seen side, as he seems capable of deep personal attachment as well as longings for the domestic life he has sacrificed. This is the informative and poignant story of a rather modest woman thrust into the center of some important historical events.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)