This comprehensive and authoritative book assesses in theoretical and empirical terms some of the most widely debated issues in the study of Cuban political economy. It presents a broad critique of the mainstream scholarship in the United States on Cuban political economy.

Preface -- Cuban Political Economy and Cubanology: An Overview -- The Antecedents and Theoretical Characteristics of Cubanology -- Cubanology and Cuban Economic Performance -- Interpreting Cuban Planning: Between a Rock and a Hard Place -- Cubanology and the Provision of Basic Needs in the Cuban Revolution -- Some Thoughts on Vital Statistics and Health Status in Cuba -- On the Problem of Studying Women in Cuba -- The Sovietization of Cuba Thesis Revisited -- Why Cuban Internationalism? -- Revolution and Paradigms: A Critical Assessment of Cuban Studies -- Cubanology and Crises: The Mainstream Looks at Institutionalization