In the following brief review, Bernardo's Silent Wing is negatively compared with historical, manner- bound novels of the 19th century.

Following on the heels of last year's much praised The Secret of the Bulls Bernardo returns to colonial Cuba in a disappointing, fictionalized version of the life of Jose Marti, here depicted as the poet and revolutionary Julian. Just before setting out to seek his fortune as a writer, teacher and activist in Guatemala, idealistic Julian proposes marriage to Lucia, a frivolous Cuban woman who desires a trousseau more than political freedom for her country. A man of his word, Julian feels he must honor his vow even after he meets the girl of his dreams in Guatemala; the woman who shares his passion for freedom is clearly the counterpart to Marti's "Nina de Guatemala." The choice to portray Marti's life as fiction seems a lamentable error...