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Monday, May 24, 2021

Travels in Cuba, written by Marie-Louise Gay and David Homel. Grooundwood Books, 2021. $15.95 ages 8 and up

 


"Pretty soon my father fell asleep 
with his face in his book. And I knew
better than to disturb my mother when 
she was drawing. This was getting pretty 
boring. I didn't want to waste my time 
on the balcony. I wanted to explore the 
city.
"

This is the fifth book in the Travels With My Family series, and is equally engaging and entertaining as each of the others: Travels With My Family (2007), On The Road Again (2008), Summer in the City (2012), and The Traveling Circus (2015). 

Fans will be pleased to meet up with Charlie, Max and their parents as they embark on a Cuban vacation. Before the vacation part can start, Charlie's mother has promised to work with children in local schools. Charlie spends the week her, practicing the Spanish language and learning about Cuban school days. 

Once the vacation part begins, the family starts to see Cuba in a different light. They learn that there are many rules; some are for the Cuban people, others are for the tourists who visit their country. Charlie is not always impressed. 

"That was the point of all the rules,
I decided. They were there to keep
Cubans and us from talking to each other.

When they leave Havana and make the long, dusty bus trip to Vinales and then by car to Trinidad, they make many new discoveries about the Cuban people, their food, their culture and their music. They are also witness to some of the country's drawbacks - poverty, lack of nutritious food, fear, and how living in a communist country impacts their way of life. It is not the Cuba he has heard about from his school pals who stay at Cuban resorts for tourists. 

Charlie makes a new friend in Lazaro, and shares adventures on horseback with him. They swim, ride, discuss life, and say goodbye when their family moves on to their next destination. The story is told for children, and examines the world as they see it. It is quite a lovely journey and does an admirable job of presenting present-day Cuba to a young audience. 

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