In this engrossing, two-part novel, which weaves together fact and fiction, Yolanda Ortal-Miranda brings to center stage one of the tragic but generally under-reported results of the Cuban Revolution: the steady exodus by sea of thousands of Cubans, desperate for freedom and at the breaking point in their ability to tolerate the stifling tyranny of the Castro regime. The plot is gripping, and the characters are colorful, fascinating and endearing. Through them, we see the realities of life in post-Revolution Cuba and the enduring quest to live where there is freedom and respect for human rights. As the novel opens, the reader is immediately transported to Cuba--a parallel, but third world, universe just 90 miles from American shores. The year is 1970, and the story is true. Rafael, a determined young man, is cutting cane at a People's Farm, hating every minute of the cruel, obligatory servitude that has been thrust on him by the government. After unsuccessful attempts to leave legally, he and his three brothers decide to swim across the dangerous waters of Guantanamo Bay, in the dark of night, to seek political asylum at the U.S. Naval Base. Will they succeed? The characters of Part II are fictional stereotypes of the following generation, whose desperation to be free, no less than those who came before, gives them the courage to defy nature and the Cuban government by crossing the perilous, shark-infested Straits of Florida in anything that will float. The reader will meet, and come to know, a fascinating collage of desperate Cubans whose lives intersect in the 1990s as they flee their homeland in an old fishing boat: Amalia, a resolute university professor; Gustavo, an oceanographer in love with Amalia; Pedro, a veteran fisherman and captain of the boat; his wife, Aquilina, the devoted mother of their totally disabled son, Santiago; and Maribel and Arturo, political dissidents. When their boat capsizes, a "Brothers to the Rescue" plane appears. Will the survivors be saved? The author's hope in writing this novel is that its readers will emotionally connect with the characters as their stories unfold, and that they will be truly moved by the real and ongoing human tragedy that the book exposes.
About the Author: Yolanda Ortal-Miranda, Professor Emeritus of The College of Saint Rose, in Albany, NY, was born in Encrucijada, Las Villas, Cuba. She studied Philosophy and Letters at the University of Havana, where she immersed herself in the world of literature and writing, never suspecting that the Cuban Revolution would soon turn her world upside down. After fleeing the regime in 1961 and becoming an American citizen, she pursued additional studies at the State University of New York at Albany, specializing in Iberian and Latin American Literature. At St. Rose, she founded and directed "Café Teatro," a venue for presenting Spanish theater works, both classical and contemporary, including two of her own plays, "Un punto que se pierde en la distancia/A Dot that fades into the distance" (a finalist in the Letras de Oro competition of the University of Miami), and a stage adaptation of "Balada Sonámbula/The Sleepwalkers' Ballad," based on historical events that occurred during the first three years of the Castro regime. Ortal-Miranda is a proud member of the Miami Branch of PEN International, the world's oldest human rights organization. In her works of political fiction, Ortal-Miranda draws upon her personal experiences as a member of the largest anti-Castro underground operation, the MRR (Movement for the Recuperation of the Revolution). Her hero to this day remains Manolín Guillot, the MRR's Chief of Intelligence, with whom she worked prior to his apprehension by Cuban Security forces. After being tortured for months, he was executed by firing squad on August 30, 1962. His final words were "Viva Cuba Libre...Viva Cristo Rey." "When the Dolphins Cry" is perhaps Ortal-Miranda's most engrossing work, although final judgment on that must be left to the reader. Her terse, narrative style creates a suspenseful momentum in the plot that effortlessly moves the story forward, occasionally weaving into the action poetic passages and images that accentuate the humanity of the book's characters. The haunting memory of this book will linger long after the reader turns the last page.