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Book Details
Abstract
The life story of a black woman born in 1902 in Cuba, her life spanning the best part of the 20th century. Through her detailed memory of her ancestors, of her still enslaved grandmother, as much as of her own life and times, she gives a portrait of being black and female in Cuba. The book seeks to encapsulate the spirit of her time, and embodies the challenges of many others as she overcomes her poverty, the humiliations suffered because of her race, and the difficulties created by her gender. Based on interviews with Reyita, and archival research, the book is a testimony which deals with all the intimate and public events in the life of this woman of extraordinary determination, who shares with us her religious faith, her sustaining love for her numerous family and her ability to work hard for her independence.
Table of Contents
| Section Title | Page | Action | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Title Page | iii | ||
| Copyright Page | iv | ||
| Table of Contents | v | ||
| Introduction | 20 | ||
| Dedication Page | 20 | ||
| Chapter 1 | 21 | ||
| White Hair, Black Skin: Who am I? | 21 | ||
| My Grandma Flew Away! | 23 | ||
| Blacks with Blacks | 26 | ||
| There's Still a Long way to go | 30 | ||
| A Black Girl | 31 | ||
| Isabel | 32 | ||
| A Woman without Prejudices | 41 | ||
| Reyita, La Cagona! | 43 | ||
| Mysteries | 46 | ||
| Mercy, have Mercy! | 48 | ||
| They called him Venus | 52 | ||
| The Schoolteacher of Báguanos | 55 | ||
| A Huge Success | 57 | ||
| Chapter 2 | 59 | ||
| Why I Married a White Man | 59 | ||
| Mistress of what? Simply Reyita! | 62 | ||
| Lend him to me, Virgencita | 65 | ||
| Barracones | 68 | ||
| The Prostitutes | 71 | ||
| Silvio, Saraza and Juan Pesca' o | 74 | ||
| And they were Famous | 75 | ||
| The Three Kings | 77 | ||
| José María, 'Cuto' | 78 | ||
| Two Competitions | 81 | ||
| My will was Done | 83 | ||
| Man does not Live by Bread Alone... Nor does Woman! | 84 | ||
| Chapter 3 | 87 | ||
| The Promise to Saint Lazarus | 87 | ||
| My Visions | 106 | ||
| My Religious Beliefs | 108 | ||
| And I had a Gift | 110 | ||
| Love Comes in through the Kitchen Door | 114 | ||
| In Search of a Better Life | 116 | ||
| Down with the Dictatorship | 119 | ||
| Chicharrones | 122 | ||
| Fears and Fancies | 125 | ||
| When the Earth Trembles | 127 | ||
| Water and Wind | 129 | ||
| Iyá, La Panza, Panza, Iyá | 130 | ||
| Macuní Suncí, Macuní Sunzá | 135 | ||
| The Path to History | 137 | ||
| Chapter 4 | 141 | ||
| Earning My Way | 141 | ||
| I Swear I'll Buy a Radio! | 144 | ||
| The Living Room Suite | 146 | ||
| And I Bought a Fridge | 147 | ||
| The Satin Dress | 149 | ||
| Luisa, My Great Friend | 151 | ||
| Alms from Thieves | 153 | ||
| Happiness ...I got some | 154 | ||
| My House! | 156 | ||
| My Rainbow | 158 | ||
| When Words Sing | 160 | ||
| Love and Tenderness | 161 | ||
| I Got Pregnant just from Looking at Him | 163 | ||
| When the Train Came in | 164 | ||
| And he Looked like Mella | 165 | ||
| Speaking from the Heart | 166 | ||
| Footnotes | 171 | ||
| Further Reading | 180 |