Dr. José B. Fernández was born in Sagua la Grande, Cuba. He is a former Dean of the College of Arts and Humanities and Pegasus Professor of History and Modern Languages at the University of Central Florida. He is an author of numerous books and articles on the Hispanic Heritage of the United States and Cuban history and literature. A former President of the Florida Historical Society and a former Chair of the Florida Folklife Council, Dr. Fernández served as a presidential appointee on the Commission to Study the Potential Creation of the National Museum of the American Latino. He received his doctorate in Spanish from the Florida State University.

The book consists of a series of interviews with a heterogeneous group of elderly Cuban exiles representing all of the island's regions. Thematically arranged, it creates a kaleidoscopic portrayal of the Cuba inhabited by these individuals prior to their exodus, invariably depicted in a heart-rending fashion. The book is an invaluable tool of information for the historian, sociologist, ethnographer, folklorist and those interested in Cuban heritage and culture. Originally publish in Spanish in 1987 by Ediciones Universal.