The Boys from Dolores: Fidel Castro's Schoolmates from Revolution to Exile
by Patrick Symmes
Published by Vintage Departures
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Reviewed by Gene Hayworth
For many Cubans, exile after the 1959 Revolution was a physical reality, involving relocation to various places around the world. But those who stayed were often affected by another, equally moving cultural and emotional exile.
The evocative images of a reunion in late September 2005, held at the banquet hall of the Miami Springs Country Club for former students of Cuba’s elite Jesuit Colegio de Dolores, set the bittersweet tone for the chronicles that follow in Patrick Symmes’ new book, The Boys from Dolores. Though many of those who attended the reunion have been transplanted to the United States, their love for Cuba and its rich heritage is evident in the conversation, dance, music, and lively festivities that Symmes so deftly describes in the opening scenes.
Part biography and part travelogue, The Boys from Dolores interweaves Cuba’s cultural and political history with Symmes’ poignant observations of contemporary life there. His initial investigation is prompted by a photograph of 238 boys, students at the Jesuit school in Santiago, Cuba, taken in 1941, a gift to Symmes from a former alumnus of the school. With a partial list of names that identifies the students, Symmes begins a journey to track down these men and learn what has proved stronger in their lives—the bonds they formed before or after the 1959 revolution.
The ghost of a youthful Fidel Castro haunts the book through their reminiscences, like the time he jumped from the third story roof of the school using an umbrella for a parachute; the letter he wrote to President Eisenhower, asking for ten American dollars; his serious nature and studious disposition—compelling memories of Castro’s school years witnessed by the men who knew him at the Jesuit school.
Ultimately, Symmes’ study is a book of contradictions, depicting the stern realities of modern- day Cuba in sharp contrast to the Cuba of the 1940s. It is a fascinating study filled with intimate personal observations.
Armchair Interviews says: Highly recommended.
Author’s Web site: http://www.PatrickSymmes.com