I, Che Guevara: A Novel

by John Blackthorn (Pseudonym), Gary Hart

Sometime during the summer of 1999 a mysterious elderly stranger appears in rural towns around Cuba, quietly advocating a new kind of politics he calls "the true republic." Old-timers begin to suspect that the stranger, who calls himself Ernesto Blanco, may actually be the martyr Ernesto "Che" Guevara. Shortly thereafter, Fidel Castro steps down from power in exchange for a commitment from the United States to recognize Cuba and lift the embargo. Diplomatic recognition, in turn, is conditioned upon free elections.Two traditional parties are formed: One is a successor to the Communist Party and the other is composed of U.S./Mafia-backed Cuban exiles. As the True Republic movement spreads like wildfire throughout Cuba, each faction devises a plot to get rid of Ernesto Blanco -- by assassination if necessary.

I, Che Guevara culminates in a frantic last-minute run up to the election in which assassins from both sides play key roles. Within the context of this revolutionary adventure, Cuba becomes a metaphor for the struggle of people throughout the world to evolve a new kind of politics, a politics with a human face.

Genres: Fiction

352 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Jahi "Providence" · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was talking to a friend about Che...mentioning that though I knew of him, I really didn't know the history in depth. She had this book on hand and thought it would be an interesting introduction. She explained it was a fictional account, but that the read was good...
I enjoyed the story, though I think I would have gotten even more out of it with more in depth knowledge of Che.
It is not hard to follow the premise and not necessary to know anything about Che to comprehend the story. If nothing else it is a political/revolutionary tale that anyone with those leanings would enjoy.
Those that are looking for inspiration or tactics may be disappointed. The story does not develop Che in great depth, but there are points that could lead one to look further...i.e. 'the true republic' and Thomas Jefferson's take on such a design.
In fact the story does not develop any of the characters in great depth, choosing rather to stay closer to the surface as it introduces interesting players.
Overall, it is still timely and relevant...Cuba, revolution, Castro, power-to-the-people.
What would really happen if Ernesto Blanco were to sit with us today, share some coffee and speak about revolution?

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I, Che Guevara" is a very entertaining read for those who have studied Che, and also for those who are new to him. I was in my local B&N and just saw the title sitting on a table. Not having heard of it before, and just having come off reading Jon Lee Anderson's Che bio, I flipped through the pages. The plot of an old man coming to a small town who claims to be the now-40 years deceased Ernesto "Che" Guevara seened fascinating to me. I mean, really, who, out of all the people who have studied Che, hasn't at least once thought to themselves "What if Che had lived?" After flipping through the pages, I flipped to the back to learn a little about the author. "John Blackthorn is the pseudonym of a political figure whose name is known in international capitals and intelligence circles. He has extensive experience in international politics-especially U.S., Russian, and Cuban relations-as well as an insider's knowledge of intelligence methods and operations." Well, that sealed the deal for me. Rarely do I buy a book so impulsively, but I'm glad I did. To anyone who doesn't normally read fiction, like me, this is worth your time.

[Navin Noronha · Rating 3 out of 5]

A terrific fictional story which everyone wishes was somehow true. The idea explained in this novel makes this book worth a read. The overall story-line while being predictable is still nerve wrenching. If only more people read it and try to implement the idea of the True Republic, then the Writer will have done his job. The characters don't have much to add to the story except that of Ernesto Blanco, who claims he is Che and the errant reporter Victoria Savidge. It tries, very hard i might add, to show a mirror to the society. But i doubt there's much getting across. Only ardent Che lovers will find a true recourse in this book.

Go for it, if Politics, Conspiracy and a bit of History excites you.

[Christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not really learned from the book, but did learn that the author is really Gary Hart, former U.S. presidential candidate writing under a pseudonym. Interesting. Great, great story, and he's an excellent novelist.

[Kipp Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting take on what would happen if Cuba had a free and open election. Sort of a slow read. Some historical perspective and with the new talks opening up (hopefully) with Cuba sort of timely.

[Esperanza · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is so timely...if only it wasn't fiction.

[Carlos "CAP" · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating book from one of the intriguing men of an earlier time. Whenever I think of Gary Hart I think of the movie "The Natural." Gary Hart was an amazing individual of strength, perception, capacity, intellect and potential who might have been "Clinton ahead of his time. Unfortunately, like Clinton, he seemed to have a certain weakness that unlike Clinton, he did not have the ability to overcome either through humbleness or an incredibly powerful "war room" and crisis management team to contain scandal.

A fascinating fiction book of the potential for change in Cuba, and more so for how it might evolve, not devolve. Greatly appropriate for this time, end of 2014, given political and international events and just plain fun to read.

[Wolfgang · Rating 1 out of 5]

"John Blackthorn" is apparently former Sen. Gary Hart. Whoop-dee-doo ! This book has a seemingly nice idea : Che is coming back to replace Fidel.
The writing is abysmal. The dialogs are between silly and crap. The plot never gets a focus as the storytelling meanders between past (1960's) and several presents that are confusingly unconnected.
Waste of time and money - threw it in the trash (paperback edition)

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

So fun to imagine "what if".... I enjoyed the journey this book took me on and the scenery of both the place and people. Right amount of fact and fiction, historical fiction at its best.

[Balazs Feher-Gavra · Rating 2 out of 5]

After a very promising start this book took a sharp downhill turn just to drown in a pool of cliches and extremely predictable 'twists'. If taken as a thriller, it's rather third-rate. For a political book, there may be something to the idea but it was poorly developed.

p.s. the cover is horrible, poor Che looks like a baboon. :(

[Crackity · Rating 1 out of 5]

Meh. Cool premise, awful writing.

[Lauri]

This was very interesting, although not knowing much about Che Guevara, I have no idea how much of the story was based in fact before it became fiction.