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Binding: HardcoverDewey Decimal Number: 792.8028092 EAN: 9781416566298 ISBN: 1416566295 Label: Scribner Manufacturer: Scribner Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 304 Publication Date: May 06, 2008 Publisher: Scribner Studio: Scribner Editorial Review: Product Description: Carlos Acosta, the Cuban dancer considered to be one of the world's greatest performers, fearlessly depicts his journey from adolescent troublemaker to international superstar in his captivating memoir, No Way Home. Carlos was just another kid from the slums of Havana; the youngest son of a truck driver and a housewife, he ditched school with his friends and dreamed of becoming Cuba's best soccer player. Exasperated by his son's delinquent behavior, Carlos's father enrolled him in ballet school, subjecting him to grueling days that started at five thirty in the morning and ended long after sunset. The path from student to star was not an easy one. Even as he won dance competitions and wowed critics around the world, Carlos was homesick for Cuba, crippled by loneliness and self-doubt. As he traveled the world, Carlos struggled to overcome popular stereotypes and misconceptions; to maintain a relationship with his family; and, most of all, to find a place he could call home. This impassioned memoir is about more than Carlos's rise to stardom. It is about a young man forced to leave his homeland and loved ones for a life of self-discipline, displacement, and physical hardship. It is also about how the heart and soul of a country can touch the heart and soul of one of its citizens. With candor and humor, Carlos vividly depicts daily life in communist Cuba, his feelings about ballet -- an art form he both lovesand hates -- and his complex relationship with his father. Carlos Acosta makes dance look effortless, but the grace, strength, and charisma we see onstage have come at a cost. Here, in his own words, is the story of the price he paid. Average Rating:
 Rating: - Memoir at its bestThis is not a book to be judged by its cover. Although No Way Home by Carlos Junior Acosta is his story about becoming a world-class ballet dancer, it is that story about the becoming that has pulled me from page to page as a Cuban boy, born into poverty, defied place, people and time to reach the heights, literally and professionally, he has achieved. So little is known by so many of us about the real struggles of people who live on the islands of the Caribbean. Little is known by so many of us ... Read More Rating: - Even if you don't care about ballet......this book will fascinate you. This is ultimately a tale about finding one's place in the world; a place that seemingly evades and, at times, can appear as unattainable as a mirage. Carlos Acosta's descriptions of his familial and economic hardships are honest and direct without being either exploitive or self-deprecating. He states things as they are, but the lyrical quality of his writing lends his ultra humble origins an unmistakable air of dignity and pride. Even as he conquered the highbrow ... Read More Rating: - A thoughtful meditation on ambition and familyI'm not interested in dancing or Cuba. To speak plainly, I didn't expect to enjoy this book. But enjoy it I did. From the cover, the book appears to be about the life of a fabulously talented dancer who begins his life is dank poverty in Cuba, and fight his way out of all that. Sounds like a well worn idea, right? But it's far more interesting than that. Carlos Acosta actually didn't want to be a ballet dancer, and tried to stop being a dancer several times. He almost succeeded. ... Read More Rating: - Fantastic!!I am not a balletomane or even a big fan of memoirs, but I loved this book! The writing, the style, and the story pull the reader in to Acosta's world. This is a universal story, told brilliantly and with great attention to language and pace. A great story for all ages! Rating: - Transcending ballet, a moving & human storyI bought "No Way Home" because I heard Julie Kavanagh (she wrote the recent Nureyev biography) call Acosta the most charismatic figure in contemporary ballet. I am glad I bought it. It's an eminently readable and moving memoir. I am a big memoir guy, but hardly a ballet aficionado. The themes in this book transcend ballet. Acosta addresses universal human issues in relating his personal history (race, the idea of home, familial relationships, ...) and he probes these issues honestly and with a keen eye for ... Read More |
