New lens for viewing Cuba: graphic novels

A few graphic novels in progress have crossed my e-mail recently because of their focus on Cuba. The first is called Happy at 90 Miles and is based on the real experiences of one Cuban citizen that attempted the raft-trip from Cuba to the United States, only to be caught and imprisoned. The story will be a terrible one—one that includes perilous journeys on the sea and the amputation of both the protagonist’s arms.

The second, Cuba: One Story, tells the tale of another Cuban exile. The writer will relate her experiences as a surgeon in Castro’s army.

Finally, Cuba is a personal story set in Miami and Havana that the author/artist says will highlight the connections between family and state, and ideals and reality in post-revolutionary Cuba.

All of these have the potential to relay a point of view that will reinforce those on the “right” (in a basic sense, the strongly anti-Castro and pro-embargo constituencies) and probably annoy those on the “left” (those that sympathize with the revolution’s goals and oppose the embargo). But note that this is not necessarily the intention of the authors or the artists: their stated objective is to shed light on individual experiences that are sometimes lost in the churning of historical and political drama.

The one other graphic novel centered upon Cuba that I’ve seen is Che: A graphic biography, which more likely lends itself to the leftist, pro-revolutionary side.