The Domino Diaries

Author: Brin-Jonathan Butler

Stock information

General Fields

  • : $29.99 NZD
  • : 9781250095794
  • : St Martin's Press
  • : St Martin's Press
  • :
  • : 0.227
  • : 01 June 2016
  • : United States
  • : 29.99
  • : 01 July 2016
  • :
  • :
  • : books

Special Fields

  • :
  • :
  • : Brin-Jonathan Butler
  • :
  • : Paperback / softback
  • : 1
  • :
  • : en
  • : 304
  • :
  • : illustrations
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  • :
Barcode 9781250095794
9781250095794

Description

A powerful and 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

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" 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""

Author description

BRIN-JONATHAN BUTLER is a writer and filmmaker. His work has appeared in "ESPN Magazine," "Vice," "Deadspin," "The Wall Street Journal, Salon," and "The New York Times." Butler s documentary, "Split Decision," is Butler s examination of Cuban-American relations and the economic and cultural paradoxes that have shaped them since Castro s revolution, through the lens of elite Cuban boxers forced to choose between remaining in Cuba or defecting to America."