Palm Trees in the Snow

by Gloria Maria Strassburger

Havana, 1939-The glamorous capital city of an alluring Caribbean island, the year that Rolando Fernández and Ninina Perea meet and fall in love. Strassburger begins her story with her parents' courtship in the golden years of pre-Castro Cuba. Her memoir recounts how her father's mental collapse and the communist revolution of 1959 uprooted her privileged childhood, both physically and emotionally. While providing substantial background on Fidel Castro's political revolt, Strassburger focuses on her family's The appropriation of their wealth and properties by the rebel regime. How families were torn apart as children were taken from their parents, forced to undergo communist indoctrination in Russia. Strassburger narrowly escaped such a fate through Operation Peter Pan, one of the largest political exoduses of children in history. Fearing for her future, her parents sent her out of Cuba-alone-in 1961. She relates the terror of being separated from her family and living in a foreign country without them. With affecting detail, Strassburger depicts her family's disintegration as her father spiraled into schizophrenia and communism forced them into exile. They left behind their loved ones, their homes, and their identities to face the hardships of a new life in the United States. Palm Trees in the Snow is a family's story of love, sacrifice, and survival. It is the author's tribute to a way of life lost forever and the embracing of a new one in America.

402 pages, Paperback

First published December 15, 2011

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bias alert: The author is my mother, but regardless, I recommend this one! It's her memoir, combining her memories of growing up in Cuba before and during the revolution, and her family's subsequent escape to the U.S., with the story of my grandfather's schizophrenia and how it affected his wife and children during this time. It's truly a compelling read, written with an affecting tenderness and great attention to detail. I'm proud of her. :)

[Rita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written autobiography!!

Loved this authors' writing style; through her descriptions of Cuba, Miami, Lumberton and Doylestown, PA, I felt immersed in those locations. I felt the love, the pain, and anxiety of a young girl discovering the truth of a flawed parent. I felt the confusion, the anger, and frustration of a society being torn apart by political upheaval. Most of all, I felt the love of her family, and the strength and determination of her mother, to survive, to thrive, and to provide for her family.

Thank you, Gloria!

[Marilyn Fowler · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book I read was about equatorial guinea and Spain not Cuba. The book I read was very interesting and I enjoyed it a lot.

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved, Loved, Loved this book!!! I listened to the audio version and couldn’t stop listening.

[Veronica Lindsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this story about equatorial guinea. I'd never heard about the history of the island before. The love stories and of the people and the island itself were great.

[Jess · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't ruin my life.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story is a story of a couple in Cuba. I also learned som Cuban history.

[Lori Michaelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved learning about the history of Equatorial Guinea through such an engaging story.

[Lectus · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not for me. It sounds so lyrical that it seems forced.

[Pamela Pine-petthong · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting time period and setting - Spanish colonizers of Guinea, Africa. The plot is quite complex; the mystery of finding out the true father of one character takes many twists and turns. Occasionally, the writing faltered, with cheesy metaphors and mundane imagery. Overall, I would recommend this book for learning about the history of both Spain and western Africa.

[Antonio Azar]

A fascinating look into Spain's recent colonial history.
Set in the late 50's Africa, colonialism is dying but no one knows whats next.
I enjoyed it.

[Brandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

good read. lots of family dynamics and a little mystery

[SwishDK44]

Loved it! Watched the movie too but not as good!