The Motorcycle Diaries: Notes on a Latin American Journey (The Che Guevara Library)

I loved this book for many reasons, and strongly recommend it. It attracted me because I have just traveled to Cuba, and had been to many of the other countries and places listed in this book. The idea of a man getting up one day with a close friend and spontaneously deciding to set off on a continental motorcycle tour was also appealing because of the adventure and travel aspects. This book exceeded all the expectations I had for it. Che Guevara’s writing style is unlike anything i had read before. The artful, beautiful way he describes everything from landscapes to his patients makes the reader feel like they are living the experiences he is, sometimes in a deeper way than the reader may have experienced themselves. Che dives into each topic or picture he sees with great emotion and personal opinion while at the same time leaving some space for the readers opinions and ideas to take form. You get the historical sense of what is being observed, with facts provided (the architechture and stories behind the churches in Lima and Cuzco) while at the same time getting Che's somewhat romanticized take on it. There is a great amount of action- (for example the dog scene, the boat scene, and motorcycle breakdowns), contrasted with the demonstration of the social problems of Latin America (racism, poverty, indecent health care). It is fascinating to see Che develop as a social being, and to see how he transforms from a freshly graduated medical student to an iconic revolutionary, while also seeing the primary discussions evolve from strictly landscapes to issues and people stories much like HONY. I read this book for an english class assignment, and have already found myself recommending it to others multiple times. I think its interesting to have read if you are following USA/Cuba relations right now.

Che was more than just a face on a hippy’s T-shirt. He was more than just a revolutionary. This book is the recollection of a young man who was searching for adventure only to come upon horrible inequality which helped shaped his view as the man he would become in the future. Che was a brilliant and eloquent writer. I’ve been told by some of my Spanish speaking professors that the book is a bit lost in translation but I think not. You do not have to be a leftist or a history student to read this. This book is simply the journals of a traveling young man.

What I really liked about Che Guevara's adventure was the insight into how his political beliefs developed. His voyage took him through some of the poorest areas of South America and you can actually feel his mind working through the injustices he witnessed. Unfortunately, this is what bogged down the book just a bit for me. I went in expecting a fun motorcycle adventure, but found a bit more social and political commentary, and not enough motorcycle. As a matter of fact, the motorcycle itself isn't even present through a lot of the book. Still, it's well written (though not perfectly translated) and was certainly an enjoyable read. I understand a bit more about Guevara after reading this and he was certainly an interesting person. -Ed Caggiani, Translator of Tracks and Horizons: 26 Countries on a Motorcycle

Perfect

"Motorcycle Diaries" fashions itself as a road trip buddy comedy. Ernesto Guevara is an Argentinean medical student in 1952. Instead of finishing his last semester at school, he, along with his bio-chemist friend Alberto climb on to a broken down Norton 500 motorcycle and tour South America. The trip is meant to free the human spirit within them, which in young person terms means to find as many women as they can. Only they learn much more about the way of the land than they probably expect too. They come across peasants and poverty stricken farmers muscled off of their land by the rich. They also experience such injustice firsthand as they are turned away for having no money. Seeing the harsh realities; no longer is Ernesto thinking of becoming the doctor his family and he wanted him to be. He is more confused and up in the air about the direction his life should take. As he says at the end of the film, "This story is not about heroic feats. It's about two lives running parallel for a while." One life is becoming a doctor, while the other is becoming a freedom fighter. This book is not about a revolutionary or a doctor; instead it is a coming of age story about a complex young man finding his idealism. You see the seeds of change and the humanitarian good nature and think that maybe this guy could have been more than what he became. This story has a resemblance to the "Epic of Gilgamesh" and "The Odyssey" but it is not a fiction; but a tale of a real journey.

This is a sketchy and superficial book overall, at times reading like a travel brochure. Things don’t really come to life, perhaps they do in the movie, but it is mildly interesting. It ends with a revolutionary coda that seems tacked on and incongruous, not to mention rodomontade and somewhat hokey. A book to break up more substantive reading.

Love this book

I was told to read this before a trip to Cuba so I could understand Che. If you have never heard of Che, this is a useful guide to understand his philosophy, or at least his philosophy as a young man. It does not however describe in any way shape or form Cuba. Che wrote what seems to be about a million journals, roughly all of which are translated into English so if you want to understand the Cuban revolution read on of those. This journal gives a vivid and well-written description of Argentina and Chile and a few other South American countries in the 1950s. It is a vivid snapshot in time of the poor conditions which led to populist and Communist revolts in so many nations. Spoiler: the motorcycle only makes it through part of the book so it is not literally motorcycle diaries for most of the way.

非常に良心的な対応で助かりました。また機会があれば利用したいです。

I can'twait to read vol 2 as well as the Bolivian diaries

The Motorcycle Diaries tells the story of a journey through South America undertaken by Che and his friend. Always hungry and penurious, Che explains how they relied on the hospitality and generosity of the people they met; his descriptions of the different customs, foods, accommodation and hospitality of the countries they passed through are fascinating. This is not a motorcycle journey book in the way that Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is - in fact the notoriously unreliable bike is abandoned quite early on - it's more of a social commentary and reflexive analysis concerning the ordinary people of South America. Some of the events described are poignant and some are hilarious - this book will make you both think and laugh. It also provides a fascinating insight into the thoughts of the young Che. This edition also includes a personal and naive introduction by Che's daughter. Altogether a thoroughly good read.

More interesting for whom wrote it than the insights of the places he visits or the man himself; other than to note that these life experiences contributed to his later world and specifically Latin American view.

I received the book without plastic wrap and it was used and I had received a same book before and it was cropped and I returned it