Short Synopsis
The author of the National Book Award winner Waiting for Snow in Havana returns with this beguilingly beautiful memoir of exile and assimilation in an alluring and alarming new land called America.

Full Synopsis
Carlos Eire's story of a boyhood uprooted by the Cuban Revolution quickly lures us in, as eleven-year-old Carlos and his older brother Tony touch down in the sun-dappled Miami of 1962—a place of daunting abundance where his old Cuban self must die to make way for a new, American self waiting to be born.

In this enchanting new work, narrated in Eire's inimitable and lyrical voice, young Carlos adjusts to life in his new country. He lives for a time in a Dickensian foster home, struggles to learn English, attends American schools, and confronts the age-old immigrant's plight: surrounded by the bounty of this rich land yet unable to partake. Carlos must learn to balance the divide between his past and present lives and find his way in this strange new world of gas stations, vending machines, and sprinkler systems.

Every bit as poignant, bittersweet, and humorous as his first memoir, Learning to Die in Miami is a moving personal saga, an elegy for a lost childhood and a vanished country, and a celebration of the spirit of renewal that America represents.

"An engrossing Cuban-American story that will leave readers wanting more." ---Kirkus

"The author writes with both levity and wisdom about the tension between Carlos the Cuban and Charles the American, describing his process of maturing as 'learning to die'—or, more prosaically, to let go of worldly attachments such as his childhood memories of life in Cuba." ---The Wall Street Journal

"Those who remember the exuberant kid from Waiting for Snow in Havana...will be moved by the man he becomes." ---The New York Times

"Eire...describes the classic American immigrant experience...with a mix of insightful observation, humor, and heartfelt emotion." ---Publishers Weekly Starred Review

"Gifted narrator Robert Fass exploits all the ironic humor and sadness of two young Cuban brothers." ---AudioFile

"A heartfelt book, at times a moving one." ---The Washington Post

"Eire shows how strong and deep are the personal impacts of emigration, yet he met his challenges head-on and succeeded." ---Library Journal

Publishers Weekly Review