I know we are not supposed to judge the cover, however, for an island as beautiful as Cuba the cover should have reflected the beauty that is Cuba.

As the story goes, it was not what I expected. What does Jamaica have to do with Cuba?

Firstly, I found the title of the Vintage Short to be a bit misleading. It promised reflective essays on Cuba – then and now, but the bulk of the book spoke about another Caribbean island, Jamaica. In fact, Cuba Then, Cuba Now included excerpts from Shapiro’s first book, Island People: The Caribbean and the World. Shapiro’s three chapters on Jamaica certainly brought the island alive with keen observations of its people, history, and culture. I liked that the narrative voice was attuned to Jamaican patois, particularly the brand spoken by its Rastafarian community. The introduction and the chapter on Cuba, however, somehow didn’t make much of an impact on me as a Caribbean-born reader and writer. That said, I enjoyed reading this title and would really like to read Island People next.