Ramonet proves a worthy interviewer, well prepared to tackle the famed Communist revolutionary's legacy, and while many of Castro's answers are predictably self-serving-"I've fought adamantly against any manifestation of the cult of personality"-the bombastic leader's views on political figures and world events are genuinely thoughtful, and at times fascinating. High points include accounts of his relationship with Khrushchev during the Cuban missile crisis, backed up by excerpts from letters they exchanged; his advice for Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez during a 2002 coup attempt; and his sincere, positive assessment of American President Jimmy Carter. Though readers may find it hard to take this authorized life story at face value, Castro's first attempt to tell his complete story provides an engaging perspective on the man and the world he helped shape.

Map of Cuba

A Hundred Hours with Fidel

1 The Childhood of a Leader

2 The Forging of a Rebel

3 Entering Politics

4 The Assault on the Moncada Barracks

5 The Backdrop of the Revolution

6 'History Will Absolve Me'

7 Che Guevara

8 In the Sierra Maestra

9 Lessons from a Guerrilla War

10 Revolution: First Steps, First Problems

11 The Conspiracies Begin

12 The Bay of Pigs/Playa Gir6n

13 The 'Cuban Missile Crisis' of October 1962

14 The Death of Che Guevara

15 Cuba and Africa

16 The Emigration Crises

17 The Collapse of the Soviet Union

18 The Ochoa Case and the Death Penalty

19 Cuba and Neoliberal Globalization

20 President Jimmy Carter's Visit

21 The Arrests of Dissidents in March 2003

22 The Hijackings in April 2003

23 Cuba and Spain

24 Fidel and France

25 Latin America

26 Cuba Today

27 Summing up a Life and a Revolution

28 After Fidel, What?

A Note on the Text and the Translation

Some Key Dates in the Life of Fidel Castro

  and the Cuban Revolution (1926-2007)

Notes

Index