'This is really an excellent study. I suspect that few 'bourgeois' economists
would be even slightly persuaded by Yaffe's arguments, much less Guevara's, but considered
as a monograph, Yaffe's book is exhaustively researched, interesting, coherent,
well-organized and written, novel, and, frankly, quite provocative in places.' -
Richard J. Salvucci, Economic History Review
'The importance of this book is in its knowledge of Che Guevara, and in improving
the theory of socialist development, as a theory in construction and permanent enrichment
given new contemporary experiences accumulating in difficult conditions in the 21st
century. The result is a book that cannot be ignored, a book that should be translated
into Spanish and other languages as soon as possible. It is not perfect, as no human work
can be; but everyone who reads it should feel the duty of participating in the discussion
and analysis that Helen Yaffe presents in this work, with the same rigour and objectivity
with which she has done so.' - Dr Jesus Pastor Garcia Brigos, London School of
Economics, IDEAS, Latin America Programme
'…Helen Yaffe's Che Guevara: The Economics of Revolution must represent one of
the most important contributions to debates about Marxist economics of recent years. As a
highly original exposition of Guevara's personal thinking and achievements in the broader
effort to create a revolutionary economy, Yaffe's work fills an important gap in the
economic history of post-revolutionary Cuba. But as a reminder of the concrete commitment
to revolutionary change that Guevara has been immortalised for in such idealistic terms,
amid renewed debate about the form taken by global capitalism and the revival of state
ownership and redistribution across Latin America, this book makes essential reading.' -
Gavin O'Toole, Latin American Review of Books
'Thanks to Helen Yaffe, readers in the English-speaking world now have a chance to
discover a Che who was a profound economic thinker and doer, not in addition to his life
as a revolutionary, but as an inseparable part of it. Even a much longer review could not
give an adequate idea of the scope of this work, based upon hundreds of books, documents,
reports and interviews. It provides a mass of detail in areas from science to workers'
participation, from investment to psychology, without ever losing track of the main
threads or becoming bogged down. I can't think of enough superlatives to describe it.' -
Allen Myers, Direct Action
'With the passion of an activist and the erudition of an academic, Helen Yaffe's
new book examines Che's contribution to Cuba's economic development and socialist
political economy.' - Enrico Tortolano, Tribune
'Helen Yaffe's book demonstrates how good history can make a timely and valuable
contribution to contemporary debates. The socialist thought of 'Che' Ernesto Guevara (on
top of his heroic guerrilla and internationalist role) has special relevance for the
current global economic crisis and the strong resurgence of socialist-inspired
'alternatives' in Latin America.' - Tim Anderson, University of Sydney
'This book is a rarity in studies of Che Guevara, by offering something genuinely
new that goes well beyond the familiar tendency to romanticise or to present
one-dimensional images. Using fascinating new sources, Yaffe gives us a detailed and
knowledgeable picture of a different Che - the minister and economic manager, grappling
with the real (as opposed to theoretical) challenges and practicalities of creating a
revolutionary economy in an underdeveloped society, but doing so without losing sight of
his genuinely innovative challenge to socialist orthodoxy. The result is a valuable
contribution to our understanding of Guevara but also to debates on the Left.'
- Tony Kapcia, Professor of Latin American History, University of Nottingham, UK
'Yaffe has no full peers. This book presents an insightful and fascinating
exposition of the path of development of Guevara's economic ideas. Yaffe's book makes an
unparalleled stride to fill a gaping hole in the literature: Guevara as an economic
theorist and practitioner.' - Frank Thompson, Lecturer in Economics, University
of Michigan, US
'Helen Yaffe has produced a very important book which can only be described as
essential reading for all socialists. On the basis of 60 interviews with Che's former
colleagues and extensive archival research, including consultation of Guevara's crucial
notes for a critique of the Soviet Manual of Political Economy, Yaffe gives us
unprecedented insight into his vital contribution to the Cuban Revolution and to Marxist
theory. One thing is certain: for anyone engaged in the struggle for a better world, the
thought of Che Guevara is a fundamental point of departure, and this book is an essential
work of reference.' - Diana Raby, Honorary Senior Research Fellow at the
Institute of Latin American Studies, University of Liverpool, UK
'The book captures the enormous energy of Guevara...This is an important and
interesting book...' - The Spokesman
HELEN YAFFE completed her doctoral thesis in the Economic History
Department at the London School of Economics, with an ESRC studentship. She then went on
to an ESRC Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Institute for the Study of the Americas,
University of London and is now a Latin American history Teaching Fellow at University
College London. She has worked on a variety of newspapers and publications and has
presented papers at conferences and seminars. She has an article in the March 2009 issue
of the journal Latin American Perspectives - a special issue commemorating the 50th
anniversary of the Cuban Revolution.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Revolutionary Consolidation and the Emergence of the BFS
The Great Debate
Education, Training and Salaries
Administrative Control, Supervision and Investment
Collectivising Production and Workers' Participation
Science and Technology
Consciousness and Psychology
Critique of the Soviet Manual of Political Economy
Che Guevara's Legacy in Cuba
368 pages, Paperback
