Habaname
By
Ana Ortiz
Yeah, yeah, bite me. So I'm the last to review/recommend/gush about "Habaname". I *never* claimed to be fast, okay?
And, besides, Ms. Ortiz has again rendered me quite speechless with her talent. I *hate* that! I mean, come now, I have a recommendation site to update every now and then - how the hell am I supposed to do my job if I can't move past "Wow!" on the paper? Huh? Huh?
Sigh.
Okay, so here - Barbara Murphy is a wacky (tall, blue-eyed, dark-haired) doctah from Boston, with the attention span of a fruit-fly, penchant for "bad 70s rock", oral fixation, socialistic inclinations and capability of administering a mean pap-smear. Chela Stevenson, in comparison, is a Cuban prostitute with a gold heart, short fuse, deep, deep love for her country and native city and a great menace to domestic animals.
To tell you that theirs is a love against all odds would be corny and hackneyed, and would do no justice - not only to the romance presented - but also to the mastery of literary execution. This story cannot be read only as an improbable love story between two women, or a very articulate call towards social awareness and a point against imbecilic stubbornness of US's policy towards Cuba - or a window into the contemporary life in Havana. It's not any *one* of those things, it is all of them together and simultaneously, and as such, this tale is a truly enriching *experience*. As if that weren't enough, the prose is interspersed, and greatly enriched, by Ana's original poetry.
And you wonder why I was speechless. Tsk.
If you're still not convinced, you must have had a lobotomy at some point, and I truly understand your lack of interest. Even *so*, I can guarantee there'll be something in this story to draw your attention. Honest. I mean, we have an interracial relationship, prostitution, sex, soulmates behaving badly, loss, death, AIDS, rimming, nuns, miserly mothers, good friends, sex, espionage, - deep breath - armed rebellion, true love, poetry, sex, talking sharks, ritualistic sacrifice, armpit lovin', ADD, communism, capitalism, revenge and sex. I hope I didn't forget anything.
So, yeah. Go read it. If you've already read it, go thank Ana again. And while you're at it - ask her for more.
Enjoy.