cover image Cuba

Cuba

Julia E. Sweig. Oxford University Press, USA, $16.95 (279pp) ISBN 978-0-19-538380-5

Using a Q&A format, this most recent book in the publisher's ""What Everyone Needs To Know"" series is more about Cuba's relationship with the United States than it is about Cuba. Sweig (director, Latin American studies, Council on Foreign Relations; Inside the Cuban Revolution) is eminently qualified to write on Cuba, Castro, and the long, shared history with American political, strategic, and economic interests. Her text, mostly on Cuba since the revolution, flows evenly over ten sections, addressing such questions as what the Cuban Missile Crisis was and how the Cuban American community reacted to the transition from Fidel to Raul Castro. However, questions on the Cuban health-care system and the state's human rights violations are not given sufficient treatment. Verdict The evolving Cuba scenario makes this a timely volume. Sweig's useful ready reference is highly recommended.-Boyd Childress, Auburn Univ. Lib., AL .