They arrived in New York City from the rural countryside of Cuba. Cesar Castillo and his brother Nestor have come to America to make their success. They both are musicians and soon find work in various clubs. They create their own orchestra, The Mambo Kings, and soon they are playing constantly, winning applause and the regard of women. This was the time of Latin music, of Desi Arnez and Xavier Cugat. Their crowning accomplishment was when Arnez came to one of their sessions and invited them to a guest spot on his television show.
Cesar is the typical macho Latino. He goes from woman to woman, thinking of nothing but making love to every woman he meets and never sticking to one too long. Nestor is the sensitive one, always longing for his first love, Maria. His love for her leads to the pair's biggest hit, 'Beautiful Maria Of My Soul'. Nestor marries and has children but he spends his life pining for Maria.
This book, portraying the Latin culture in the 1940's, won the Pulitzer Prize. It is full of descriptions of the spicy food, the sex and the women, and the importance of family and friends. Cesar is an overwhelming figure, always ready to give whatever he can to anyone he knows. The writing is sensual and transports the reader to another time and place. After the 1940's and the end of the Latin music heyday, the book becomes less interesting as Cesar has to make the best of his life after his reason for performing and living large disappears. This book is recommended for literary fiction readers.
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