The Domino Diaries
My Decade Boxing with Olympic Champions and Chasing Hemingway's Ghost in the Last Days of Castro's Cuba
ISBN10: 1250095794
ISBN13: 9781250095794
Trade Paperback
304 Pages
$19.00
CA$25.00
A lively work of immersive journalism, Brin-Jonathan Butler’s account of his time chasing the American dream through Cuba
Whether he’s hustling his way into Mike Tyson’s mansion for an interview, betting his life savings on a boxing match (against the favorite), becoming romantically entangled with one of Fidel Castro’s granddaughters, or simply manufacturing press credentials to go where he wants—Brin-Jonathan Butler has always been the “act first, ask permission later” kind of journalist.
The Domino Diaries is the culmination of Butler’s decade spent in the trenches of Havana, trying to understand a culture perplexing to westerners: one whose elite athletes regularly forgo multimillion-dollar opportunities to stay in Cuba and box for their country, while living in penury. Butler’s fascination with this distinctly Cuban idealism sets him off on a remarkable journey, training with, befriending, and interviewing the champion boxers that Cuba seems to produce more than any other country.
In the process, though, Butler gets to know the landscape of the exhilaratingly warm Cuban culture—and starts to question where he feels most at home. In the tradition of Michael Lewis and John Jeremiah Sullivan, Butler is a keen and humane storyteller, and the perfect guide for this riotous tour through the streets of Havana.
Reviews
Praise for The Domino Diaries
“A writer with less integrity might have concluded . . . that Fidel Castro’s experiment had failed . . . But [Butler’s] time in Cuba provided this talented and ambitious writer with all he needed to introduce readers to the complex and contradictory island he loves.”—The Boston Globe
“Far more than a sports memoir, this terrific book . . . provides a rich (if quirky) portrait of contemporary Havana . . . one of the most soulful and bewitching places on the planet.”—Chicago Tribune
“[A] gonzo-poetic blend of sports journalism, political philosophizing, and gorgeous first-person travelogue . . . this is a book that pulls no punches.”—Passport Magazine