Cuban tango to the rhythm of the blues

Cuban Tango in a Blues Rhythm by journalist Eduard Freisler is not just another travel report. It is a declaration of love for a country that the author visited twenty-five years ago and, so to speak, has remained in spirit ever since. On his returns to the island, he encounters many extraordinary human stories and also shapes his own destiny there. Through captivating storytelling, he draws the reader into the action and, over the course of decades, shows us Cuba not only as the hell of a dictatorship but also as a wonderfully warm-hearted country.

The photographs for the book were taken by Renata Kalenská.

About the author:

A journalist, commentator for Czech Radio, and external contributor to Deník N and the Seznam Zprávy server. He studied journalism at Hunter College in New York. For over ten years, he worked in the United States as a correspondent for Lidové noviny. Before that, he worked at MF Dnes and spent a year in Taiwan. Between 2018 and 2020, he lived in Caracas, Venezuela, where he worked for a number of American media outlets such as the Miami Herald, Christian Science Monitor, and The Daily Beast. In recent years, he has travelled to dozens of countries in South America, Asia, and Africa.

“In the stories of (extra)ordinary Cubans, you will discover the tragedy of a fairy-tale island. An island of never-ending Despair! A sad read that also brings a helpless, yet all the more furious, anger towards the charismatic, uniformed Creator of it all – Fidel. The faithful one. A few kilometres from his native hacienda, a family brought me their teenage daughter, asking if I could take her on the back of my bike to Europe. The silver lining to the bleak content is the book’s amazing style. A reportage that often transitions into pure – world-class – literature; perhaps even Hemingway will come to mind. The author's astonishing insight, given by years of personal experience with the island and a wide circle of friends. The purest professionalism. Cuban Tango is instructive for today as well. Fidel is now with the Lord (perhaps by the name of Lucifer). But new fighters always rise! Havana. Caracas. Moscow. Budapes… Let's leave it at that.

A book you’ll read in one breath.”

Tomáš Hanák, actor and publican