The Legend of Ron Añejo
By Ed Teja 

     Almost everyone has heard of “Murphy’s Law.” Ron Añejo is a prime example of this
principle. He is a modern day “boat bum” who has made a career out of cruising the Caribbean—and conning people.

     The Legend of Ron Añejo is told in the first person, not by the man himself, but by a man who is in search of adventure and sets sail for the Caribbean isles, only to learn that his boat has sprung a leak, and this leads him to the infamous Ron Añejo. “Busted boats,” as Ron describes such vessels, is his specialty.

     Before long, Ron and the narrator set sail for other islands, and eventually make their way to Venezuela. They run amuck (literally) and call ashore for help, but have to hightail it before the help arrives, lest the Coast Guard finds them with their illegal cargo aboard. When they get to Venezuela, they encounter great difficulty in getting their paper work straightened out. The only proof of ownership they have is a German paper, which says nothing at all about the boat. They “luck out” by getting a Venezuelan official who actually speaks German. (Reviewer’s note: Having spent 9 years in Venezuela, this part of the book was very realistic. It took me back to the week we spent at the Colombian border, being refused entry to Venezuela because our children were on my passport and my husband’s visa.)

     The people in this book were typically Latinos: laid-back, happy, unconcerned about what tomorrow might bring. For a look at the life on the other side of the ocean, I highly recommend this book. It will have you laughing at the pickles they get into, and giggling with delight when they worm their way out of them.