Like Tony I am a cuban american who left Cuba in the early 60s for political freedom to study in the States. I came from a successful middle class family and a history of political successes and upheaval. I have always wanted to go back to re-live my youth in Havana, Tarara y Santa Maria del Mar (like Tony in Varadero) where I spent the happiest time of my youth. I have known of the misery of our people because I kept in touch, however Tony has been able to portray that misery in his wonderful black and white pictures. His writtings and dialogues are very easy to read but with a real message for everyone to understand. This is a great book for those who will like an honest and unbias portray of the cuban situation today. Tony has let these people speak out their feelings (pro and against) for the world to judge. I envy Tony for having the opportunity to return. His book has made me very sad because we are limited in our ability to help them. I cried for the younger generation unable to better themselves. Only the beauty of our land and sea remains untouched. Someday our people will be free again to make their choices and Cuba will be a wonderful place to visit. I promised myself to be in the first plane to help rebuild it.

Tony Mendoza's journey through Cuba takes you into the world of the average Cuban. He does an excellent job of reflecting on his childhood memories of Cuba while combining present day Cuba. This book contains true actual feelings and impressions of Cuba instead of the naive happy-go lucky attitude expressed in most touristic journals typical of many other photographers.

The images captured by my born-again cuban cousin Tony Mendoza will endure.Through his magically sensitive photographic lens and engaging story telling prose. Those that do not know Cuba and read his book, will learn by sharing the daily rhythms of its people in the midst of their aimless sub-existence. Those that know, and particularly those that are cuban -american, may wish to prudently consider a box of tissue. I agree with the author. His father Miguel would have been proud of this book.

This neat book goes beyond the 20 contemporary stories of family cats - to include wonderful photographs of real cats and neat cartoons.

This book was edited by Michael J. Rosen who has a great eye to cat stories that tug at the heart.

The picture of the blue eyed white cat on the cover is almost reason alone for a cat lover to buy this book.

I really enjoyed it!

I had always meant to buy a copy of this book ever since I read its review on People magazine several years ago (I think it was around the time when Socks was still in the news and the magazine reviewed a bunch of cat-related books to commemorate the First Cat). Sadly, by that time the book was out of print (I tried calling a few stores and they hadn't even heard of the title!) and I'd just about given up. Imagine my pleasant surprise when I found Ernie's startled appearance on a shelf as I was browsing in an L.A. bookstore this past weekend! Needless to say, I grabbed the last copy, took it home, and was not disappointed! No, Ernie is not the cute kitty next door; rather, he's a seasoned hunter with New York smarts and attitude to boot (or at least that's what Mendoza's photography and accompanying text would have us believe!). If you're in the market for a wisecracking tuxedo cat who's firmly in touch with his wild side, get a copy of this book and be entertained! (Mendoza's brief account of his two-year relationship with Ernie makes for an interesting read also.)

I was attracted by this greenish hard-covered book with a startled look of a feline, called Ernie. Cats have millions of expressions but you are not going to forget this one, and those inside the book. Living with Ernie for 2 years, Mendoza grasped the essence of this special cat with his talent in photography. All the photos are black & white, together with the thoughts of the photographer and Ernie's himself. I am impressed by the photo on page 77 - Ernie was jumping to catch the left hand of Mendoza (while he took the photo with the other hand). It gives me the thought of "When you target on something, go for it!". I admire the brave of cats. When you have read through the book, you would probably like me - become a fan of Ernie!

Now incomprehensibly out of print, Mendoza's "Ernie" Photos are easily the best photo collection on an individual cat. In Mendoza's success in capturing othe mercurial moods and attitudes of a highly mercurial animal, he rivals--and perhaps equals--Tom Wester's "Cats," which Doris Lessing justly pronounced "the best book of photographs of cats there is." Some years ago I passed up an opportunity to buy a good used copy of "Ernie," and I have regretted it ever since. Alas. Like Wester's book, "Ernie" also works well as a photographic essay on cat behavior and personality--comparable in its way to Lessing's own "Particularly Cats" or May Sarton's "The Fur Person"--or Cleveland Amory's books on Polar Bear.

I bought this on an impulse and loved it. I sent out all the postcards and bought a second for myself. Can you believe that this book has bee in print since 1988!! This inspired me to start photographing cats.

This book is not for anyone who loves cat and is looking for a collection of heartwarming cat stories. It is depressing and I found some of the stories to be outright cruel. If you are looking for a nice collection of cat stories by a veterinarian who writes fondly of cats, I suggest James Herriot's Cat Stories.

If you are a cat lover, do not be fooled by the title of this book. One would assume that this book would contain heartwarming stories of cats and their owners. That is not the case. Most of the owners in these stories don't even care about their cats. In one particular story, a man starves his cat to death. In another, a man poisons his cat with toxic paint. You are even led to believe that another man throws his cat into a bonfire. I was appalled by this book. This book should be thrown in the bonfire!

Some of the stories are fairly good. However, many are depressing, or worse. Do you really want to hear someone describe how his cat gets weaker and weaker and finally dies as he intentionally starves it to death? There are better collections of cat stories out there.