My business partner Fidel Castro: Cuba: from the dream to reality

History, business, love, eroticism, power, economics, politics, black magic and revolution: all these ingredients are featured in this foreign businessman’s intriguing account of his adventures on the Caribbean island. This book is the first objective assessment of the Cuban economy from the viewpoint of a joint venture – the partners being Fidel Castro on the one hand and Michel Villand and his co-investors on the other. In addition to highlighting the commercial opportunities and pitfalls, it includes vivid portraits of local characters and candid anecdotes about the terrible struggles Cubans face in their day-to-day lives, with emotions running the gamut from happiness to hopelessness, anxiety to dreams, passion to resignation. Havana is lovingly depicted: the scent of cinnamon and tobacco wafts through the air and the atmosphere brims with exoticism, humidity and sensuality. A real political thriller, an insider’s analysis of the shipwrecked system and an admirable people’s struggle to survive. The English edition is an updated and expanded version. Previous editions have appeared in French (Mon Associé Fidel Castro) and Spanish (Mi socio Fidel Castro).