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<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
By J. Adrian Betancourt, Host
The Miami Book Hub<\/p>\n
The first episode of The Miami Book Hub \u2014 my new podcast on CNEWS TV \u2014 began the way
many Miami stories do: with friendship, community, and a shared passion that bridges
backgrounds and perspectives. \u201cI couldn\u2019t think of anyone better to have on my first show than
my guest to my right,\u201d I said at the top of the inaugural program. \u201cHe is not only an author, but
he is my friend and my neighbor.\u201d<\/p>\n
That neighbor is Adolfo \u201cAl\u201d Ovies \u2014 a Cuban-American author with a deep and uncommon
expertise in Civil War history. Ovies has already published two volumes of his multi-book series
The Boy Generals, with a third scheduled for release July 15, and a fourth unrelated book on the
Bay of Pigs conflict in progress. Despite living in South Florida, far from the famous fields of
Gettysburg, he traces his lifelong fascination to an early experience that left a permanent mark.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe left Cuba in 1960\u2026 I was six or seven,\u201d Ovies recalled. His grandmother, married to an
American, lived in Connecticut, and the family settled there after arriving in the U.S. \u201cThe
Gettysburg battlefield was pretty close by\u2026 and once I went to Gettysburg, I just got bit big
time by the Civil War bug.\u201d<\/p>\n
That \u201cbug\u201d came with a specific focus: George Armstrong Custer \u2014 a figure most Americans
associate with Little Bighorn. But Ovies\u2019 work digs into the deeper, earlier story. \u201cThe little
people may know about Custer is \u2018Custer\u2019s Last Stand,\u2019 but there\u2019s so much more to the man,\u201d I
noted, setting the stage for Ovies to explain how The Boy Generals\u00a0is less about legend and
more about the volatile human dynamics behind military history.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s\u2026 a double biography,\u201d Ovies explained, describing the twin anchors of his trilogy: Custer
and fellow cavalry officer Wesley Merritt. What makes the relationship fascinating, he said, is
that it\u2019s both central and surprisingly underexplored. \u201cThere\u2019s hundreds of books written about
George Custer and only one book about Wesley Merritt,\u201d he said. That imbalance, he realized,
was the edge he needed \u2014 the narrative pivot that would make his series distinct.<\/p>\n
Their rivalry began with rank and never cooled. \u201cCuster was really rankled by the fact that\u2026
Wesley Merritt was always Custer\u2019s superior officer,\u201d Ovies said. \u201cHe just hated that and he did
everything he could to the point of insubordination.\u201d When asked about the flashpoint, Ovies
pointed to the Appomattox campaign, describing how Custer, ordered to yield the lead to
another division, refused. \u201cHe spurred his horses onto a gallop to ensure that Merritt would
never get back to him,\u201d Ovies said. \u201cIt was just continuous throughout the war.\u201d<\/p>\n
Part of what gives the series its texture is Ovies\u2019 devotion to firsthand accounts and battlefield
research \u2014 something I\u2019ve witnessed as his neighbor. \u201cYou must have a love of research to
have done as much as you have,\u201d I told him, recalling years of watching him disappear into
sources and drafts. Ovies credited his late friend and mentor, historian Eric J. Wittenberg, who
authored more than 23 books on Union cavalry operations. \u201cHe mentored me,\u201d Ovies said.
Together, they traveled to major Civil War sites \u2014 from Gettysburg to Cedar Creek, Winchester,
and beyond \u2014 then debated the historical record late into the night. Wittenberg even wrote a
foreword for one of Ovies\u2019 books.<\/p>\n
Ovies\u2019 interest in military history didn\u2019t stop with the 1860s. In a twist worthy of a novelist, a
Civil War photography expert he met at a Gettysburg bar sparked his next major project: a
military history of the Bay of Pigs invasion. \u201cYou live in Miami, you speak Spanish\u2026 you should
consider writing something about the Bay of Pigs,\u201d Ovies recalled being told. The result is
Beaches of Glory: A Military History of the Bay of Pigs, now in progress and built on interviews
with veterans of the famous conflict.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the key points is the fact that I interviewed close to two dozen of the Bay of Pigs
veterans,\u201d he said, emphasizing the human stories behind the historical headlines. He describes
his approach as intentionally nonpartisan. \u201cI\u2019ve kind of done away with the politics of it,\u201d Ovies
said. \u201cMy Bay of Pigs book focuses very heavily on the three days of the actual battle.\u201d<\/p>\n
When the conversation shifted to advice for writers, Ovies distilled the craft into a single
principle: persistence. \u201cYou have to stick to it every day,\u201d he said. \u201cWriter\u2019s block\u2026 is a real
thing. And you just have to plow through it\u2026 you can always go back and edit what you\u2019ve
written, but you\u2019ve got to continue forging ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n
That hit home. I admitted that I\u2019ve been there too \u2014 months of stalled progress, followed by a
return when the words finally flowed. Ovies agreed that sometimes stepping away can be
productive. \u201cThe time spent away from it kind of cleansed my mind a little bit,\u201d he said, adding
that his third volume may be \u201csome of the best writing I\u2019ve done.\u201d<\/p>\n
As The Miami Book Hub\u00a0begins its mission \u2014 connecting Miami\u2019s literary community through
authors, publishers, bookstores, institutions, and readers \u2014 it felt fitting to start with a
neighbor\u2019s story that began far from Miami, then found its voice here. After all, as I said at the
outset, even if Al and I don\u2019t share many opinions, \u201cone thing we share\u201d is simple and powerful:
\u201ca love of books.\u201d\u00a0 Well, that and a crumbling fence in need of repair, but that\u2019s between us
(pun intended).<\/p>\n
You can purchase copies of Adolfo \u201cAl\u201d Ovies\u2019 trilogy, The Boy Generals at: To watch the full interview and explore additional episodes of The Miami Book Hub \u2014 Miami\u2019s home for readers, writers, and literary resources \u2014 please visit the YouTube channel:
www.savasbeatie.com<\/a><\/p>\n
youtube.com\/@J.AdrianBetancourt\/playlists<\/a><\/p>\n
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