The Bolivian Diary

'Guevara was a figure of epic proportions. These diaries, stark and moving, will be his most enduring monument' ObserverThe final diaries of Che Guevara begin in 1966, when he travelled to Bolivia to foment a revolution, and end just two days before his death in October 1967. They form an unvarnished account of his guerrilla campaign against CIA-backed Bolivian troops, fighting in the jungle and keeping his men's spirits up - even as the struggle started to fail. Found in Guevara's backpack and smuggled to Cuba after his execution, The Bolivian Diary is an inspiring record of, and a moving memorial to, a revolutionary life.

Born in Rosario, Argentina, on June 14, 1928, and killed on October 9, 1967, the short life of Ernesto “Che” Guevara de la Serna is that of one of the greatest and most enduring revolutionary figures of all time. One of Time magazine's "icons of the 20th century,” Che was politicized first-hand during his travels as a young man around Latin America, witnessing the CIA-backed overthrow of the elected government of Jacobo Árbenz in 1954 in Guatemala. Soon after, he sought out a group of Cuban revolutionaries exiled in Mexico City and, in July 1955, immediately after meeting their leader Fidel Castro, enlisted in their expedition to overthrow Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista. The Cubans nicknamed him "Che," a popular form of address in Argentina.

After a fierce revolutionary struggle, General Batista fled on January 1, 1959, and Che became a key leader in the new revolutionary government. Until his murder in 1967, Che was also the main international representative of the Cuban revolutionary government, heading numerous delegations to Asia, Africa, and throughout the Americas.