If this seems too ideological, too political, well,… Try reading a biography of Thomas Jefferson without coming across the line, “We the People…”. This is the first book to touch on the factional disputes and internal dynamics of the July 26 th Movement and the Cuban Revolution as a whole, which means that Spain believed what I believe: you can’t understand Ernesto Guevara without understanding the Cuban Revolution. He goes beyond just rhetoric in quoting Che, choosing instead soundbites that let you hear the gears turning in this remarkable man’s head. Spain’s points of interest are focused, relevant, and well-argued where arguable. The content of the text is also excellent. Nothing more is said of his wound, but there’s still a bandage on his neck by page 40, several panels later. On page 39 it shows Che getting grazed in the neck during the early days of the July 26 Movement. It was also the only work that was by a single person, not a team of writer-and-illustrator. What his visuals lack for in polish, they make up for in detail. Of all of the books, his has a decidedly indie style (that’s Spain for you). I wish he were still alive today, because I’d love to ask him what compelled him personally to do this piece-and furthermore, why a bunch of other people got interested in similar projects right around the same time. Editor: Paul Buhle (also contributed an afterword on Che, co-written with Sarah Seidman)Īs something of a legend in his own right, comics maker Spain Rodriguez had this Graphic Biography of Che Guevera out before the three others I have reviewed here.

Che by Spain Rodriguez