It's interesting to have just finished reading a book called A Girl Like Che Guevara at the same time that Dade County is banning a children's book about life in Cuba. (link via Leila) I am not familiar with A Visit to Cuba (or the entire series of social studies books it is part of) but it seems beyond bizarre to be protesting that a book is not critical enough of a dictatorship by demanding the book be banned. Is no one in Miami aware of what irony means? It sounds like things got very ugly down there though, as one member of the school board felt threatened by the book's opponents:

Board member Robert Ingram said he only supported the ban out of fear for his family's safety and to invite a lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union.

"There's a passion of hate," Ingram said. "I can't vote my conscience without feeling threatened - that should never happen in this community any more."

I do think that soem brutally honest books about Cuba are necessary - but not to gradeschoolers. It seems like they should be more concerned about foods, clothing and cultural monuments in foreign countries and not the effects of communism. (Save that for high school please.)

When they do get older, A Girl Like Che Guevara is an excellent book to send in the direction of any teen who is the slightest bit curious about life in the island nation. But beyond that, it's a great choice for girls in particular who are looking for a good coming of age novel. I was quite impressed by how it managed to show the difficulties of daily life in Cuba (circa 1982) while also being a classic story about a young woman questioning her identity. I read it because I wanted to know about Cuba, but didn't want to become trapped in politics and history. I just wanted to read a story that happened to take place in Cuba with Cuban characters in the same way that reading Shaman Pass takes place in Alaska with Alaskan characters. I loved Lourdes though, with her dark skinned mother and white skinned father - with a Catholic grandmother in one house and another who practices Santeria across town. The many questions that Lourdes must face while she figures out who she is (black or white, brave or scared, loved or lost - loyal to her mother or father) are universal to teens everywhere. The fact that Lourdes lives in Cuba and idolizes Che Guevara is critical to the storyline, but not to understanding and enjoying who she is. And denying her story, or any story that might open the eyes of young readers to another country, seems like an awful shame.

I hate it when books are banned. Knowledge is power - if the people of Miami weren't so afraid of Cuba then maybe they would understand that.