With Fidel Castro and his hated regime rapidly heading toward the ash heap of history, one wonder what it must be like to be in Venezuela's President, Hugo Chavez's shoes, watching his hero wither away? 
 
In writing that splendidly resembles magic realism, one of Hispano—America's finest thinkers, Carlos Alberto Montaner, pens a fascinating essay exploring the Macondo—like implications of Castro's death for his Venezuelan acolyte. Montaner explores everything from absurd new bilateral treaties being signed, to Chavez's conflicted thrill at assuming Castro's mantle, the disorganized character of the Castro—Chavez relationship, and what pragmatic Cubans are likely to do after a certain death in Havana. Splendid reading. 

A. M. Mora y Leon