Havana Nocturne

This book - a (somewhat trashy) history of the American mafia's dealings in Cuba in the 1950's - explores an interesting topic, with some fascinating anecdotes. For someone who knows very little about the history of 20th century Cuba, this book was an entertaining and illuminating description of the effects of American imperialism, a corrupt dictatorship, and “creative” business, and the ways that the culture of corruption and criminality gave Castro's revolutionaries momentum. This is not the most scholarly history book I've ever read, but it was fun.