A basic text for conducting a low tech war against a technically superior enemy, Guevara had a good mind, and had been deeply committed to the struggle against American Imperialism. The book is less rhetorical that the Mao Tse Dung effort with the same title in English. It has been reprinted many times, and is still read by both the Guerrillas and there opponents. You will see the cited edition is not the one I read by reference to the reading date. ( )

He is ready to give his life, but the positive quality of this guerrilla warfare is precisely that each one of the guerrilla fighters is ready to die, not to defend an ideal, but rather the convert it to reality.


Guerrilla Warfare by Che Guevara is the book of standards and tactics for guerrilla warfare for the 1960s. Guevara needs no introduction. He is either loved or hated with very few people not taking sides.

Although dated in terms of weapons and the lay of the land after fifty years, the book still holds value. Technology has certainly changed. The Chiapas rebels made history by using the internet to promote their cause. Live Twitter feeds now give worldwide coverage to rebellions and protests. Much has changed since Guevara's days of messengers and carrier pigeons. What makes this book interesting is what makes the guerrilla. When I joined the Marines in the early 1980s, I remember reading through the pre-boot camp material while on the delayed entry program. It explained what it is to be a Marine. How I would be trained to be a cut above the military servicemen around the world. We trained and acted on a higher standard. There was a build up to being a Marine. The idea was to psych you up for the challenge.

Guevara seems to follow the same path. Guerrilla fighters were morally superior to the oppressors. They were to treat the local population with respect and prove to the population that they were the good guys. When engaging the enemy, prisoners were not to be taken. There were to be lectured on the error of their ways and released. Injured enemies were to be given medical treatment. Again, the move was made to appear to be the bigger person, but it was also a very practical move. Guerrillas were in no position to create and run prisoner camps. Guerrilla warfare's intent was to wear down the opponents to a tipping point to where the population would feel motivated to join en mass. A captured and released soldier might be less willing to put his life on the line for a second time.

This book still contains practical information. Engage the enemy only when you know you will win. Always make sure that when you engage the enemy, that you will capture enough ammunition to replace what was expended. Keep civilian casualties at a minimum; these are your allies and when acts of sabotage are needed, carry them out where they hurt the enemy and not the local population. Do not blow up a soft drink factory; it serves no military purpose concentrate on what feeds you enemy: Power plants, ammunition factories, and places that produce war material.

Guerrilla Warfare is an idealist type of book. It instructs on what makes a guerrilla a hero and leaves out what happens when things go wrong. It is written to make fighting an oppressor morally right and a noble cause. Guevara insists that outside government forces and influence should be kept out of the struggle. Why change from one master for another? In keeping with that theme, he does not mention communism or socialism. Interesting too, Yankee and Soviets are only mentioned twice. America, when used, refers to the hemisphere and not the US. A dated read in technology, but the marketing it still rings true. Selling an idea is not much different from selling a product. Perhaps Che was a bit more of a capitalist than he thought. ( )

This edition of Che's classic work Guerrilla Warfare contains the text of his book, as well as two later essays titled _Guerrilla Warfare: A Method_ and _Message to the Tricontinental._ A detailed introduction by Brian Loveman and Thomas M. Davies, Jr., examines Guevara's text, his life and political impact, the situation in Latin America, and the United States' response to Che and to events in Latin America. Loveman and Davies also provide in-depth case studies that apply Che's theories on revolution to political situations in seven Latin American countries from the 1960s to the present. Also included are political chronologies of each country discussed in the case studies and a postscript tying the analyses together. This book will help students gain a better understanding of Che's theoretical contribution to revolutionary literature and the inspiration that his life and Guerrilla Warfare have provided to revolutionaries since the 1960s.

En todo el libro el Che hace gala de un lenguaje claro y no por ello falto de detalles o fuerza. Sin embargo, aunque como he dicho todo el libro comparte el mismo lenguaje, la primera mitad explica conceptos de mas bajo nivel, tacticos, y con mas detalle mientras que la segunda mitad habla de conceptos estrategicos y politicos, muchos de los cuales ya habian sido esbozados en la primera mitad y a los que no añade nada que sea de gran interes. ( )

Mostly practical advice, on organization, equipment, discipline, sabotage, and other things. Measured in tone and clear on things like decency towards the civilian population, etc. Also focus on learning and the need for indoctrination. No exaggerated portaits of the other side. It would be good if the tone of ideological discourse was more often like this. ( )