Stalked

July 7, 2014
World Communism faces off against the American Way in Sheehy’s Horatio Algeresque sequel to 2013’s The Boy Who Said No. Cuban exile Frank Mederos marries Magda and strives to build a new life for his family in his adopted homeland. For Frank, the United States in 1967 is unfamiliar territory, torn by race riots and filled with bewildering variety, but it still offers him more opportunities than Communist Cuba ever did. Eschewing the offer of a high-risk job with the CIA, Frank gains entry into America’s then-vibrant middle class through hard work. Frank’s happy existence hits an unexpected land-mine when he receives some grim news about Magda. Back in Cuba, humiliated Lt. Pino, whom the authorities blamed for failing to stop Frank’s escape from the island, plots his revenge. This earnest novel has an oddly archaic feel, often reading like popular propaganda from the Cold War era.