The Prince of Los Cocuyos: A Miami Childhood

What roles do Deycita, Anita, Victor, and Ariel play in Blanco’s eventual acceptance of his sexuality?

How do Blanco’s family members demonstrate ambivalence toward being in America? What do they miss about Cuba, and what does America have to offer them that Cuba does not?

Identify moments when Blanco is able to feel connected to Cuba and to his Cuban heritage. Why does he sometimes have trouble reaching this part of himself, and how does he see his family who frequently grow nostalgic about Cuba? What is it about the moments listed in the first part of this question that enable him to understand his family members’ nostalgia?

Why does Blanco call his book The Prince of Los Cocuyos?

The Prince of Los Cocuyos centers around Blanco discovering his Cuban heritage and his sexuality. Where does Blanco offer signs that he is also discovering himself as an artist?

How is El Cocuyito an oasis not only for its customers but also for Don Gustavo and Gloria? How do Don Gustavo and Gloria demonstrate all that exiles have left behind? Why is El Cocuyito also an oasis for Blanco?

How does Blanco discover that people who seem different in fact have much in common, and how does this lesson impact his growth?

Blanco opens his memoir with an anecdote about Abuela using extra quotas of sugar to sell baked goods on the black market, and he closes with Mamá telling him to get in the car because they “can’t stay here forever” (249). What is the symbolic significance of his choosing to open with Abuela and close with Mamá? What is the significance of those particular anecdotes? What is the effect of his choice to discuss the revolution in the first sentence of the memoir?