Havana is a Really Big City

Book excerpt: These humorous and poignant stories that illustrate everyday life in contemporary Havana will challenge the reader's assumptions about the Cuban reality. Mirta Yanez is a Havana-born poet, novelist, critic, and extraordinary writer of short fiction. Her narrative stands out by virtue of a complex yet unmistakable Cuban flavor and a characteristic preoccupation with the social, political, and economic particularities of the island and how these affect los cubanos. Catherine Davies notes that ''Yanez writes about everyday life in Havana; her chatty, colloquial style full of light-hearted humour, whatever the theme, makes her fiction a delight to read''. --Amazon.com.