Second generation Lithuanian
580705
My grandparents left Lithuania in the mid 1890s and came to the US, Pennsylvania to be exact.  Since I am the youngest of seven children, I never knew my grandparents, but, as I am told, they never talked about where they came from.  Both my parents were first generation American born Lithuanians.  Unlike the author, I never was taught Lithuanian, much to my chagrin, but so much of her story brought back memories or gave me pause to think of the setting I grew up in - a small Lithuanian village in mid Pennsylvania, the anthracite region.  I too went to a LIthuanian elementary school - we did not have the Saturday schools there.  I do not remember that LIthuanian history or language were as emphasized in our school as in the school in Chicago.  Ah, the bars there were, four in the village of 500 souls where I grew up.  The arguments, the fights were so prominent!  There is much pride in being Lithuanian, but there is also so much that one can not be proud of - both sides were shown in the book, but, I think, the Lithuanian side won out.  An excellent read.
1642235
The book is a good reference source in my family ancestry research.
1087263
I have bought these Oplatki from this supplier twice now.  They came promptly.  They appeared to we quite fresh, tasted well and broke apart easily as required.  I would buy them again.  Before I found them here through Amazon, it was difficult the get them in the US.  I particularly want my first generation American children to also appreciate the traditions from their ancestors in Poland.
2771106
I have found one error in this otherwise excellent book, an error that has been repeated in many other books of modern European history.  When discussing the partitions of Poland the author discusses the partition of Lithuanian territories as though these territories were a part of Poland.  He states that Byelorussia and Polish Ukraine were ceded to Russia by Poland.  This is not true.  The fact of the matter is that Byelorussia and parts of the Ukraine were ruled by Lithuania and not by Poland.  There was a Lithuanian Ukraine but there never was any such thing as the Polish Ukraine.  Hopefully these matters will be resolved in later editions.
1936880
A very personal experience fleeing from a Soviet occupied Lithuania and into a Nazi occupied Europe.  The author, Felicia Prekeris Brown, recounts, in vivid detail, the horrors of the Soviet occupation, the invasion of the Nazis and then the return of the Soviets.  She had to leave, with her family, to flee to the West, into and through the Nazi occupied territories.  The book recounts the goodness in people, and the worst in people.  Her personal accounts are riveting; the suffering and eventual triumph is astounding.  This is a must read for anyone interested in Lithuania, and in the horrors of the war.  One of the aspects that make it so sad, is the lack of personal concern by the western allies after the war.  They had policy to follow, but never seemed to have any compassion for the people involved.  fortunately, many survived and were left to tell the tales of the suffering of all the peoples who were displaced by the war in Europe.
4454728
Pentru toti cei care emigreaza cu intentia ferma de a reusi, dar si de a trai frumos, cartea asta e o discreta dar consistenta invitatie la luciditate, curaj, metoda si speranta.
Se pot invata multe din 'patimirile' americane ale autorului, pe care 1989 l-a gasit traind in Bucuresti, iar 9/11 in New York.
3446701
In tracing my family history we have found our way back to Wales and to Owain Glyn Dwr who would be a very great-great grandfather of mine. It is interesting to learn where and who you have come from through out the ages, and Owain is a very colorful person.
1091960
The story of a German Jewish family's  survival in WWII that is written by and encompasses it's effect on the second generation.
3527827
The impositions of being a first generation born in a foreign country, according to the standards beset by the parents of the old country, is difficult for most children, especially when parents impart old world customs and traditions which differentiate from the new culture. Many parents fail to integrate their own lifestyles, due to their dismissive hand, adoption of their newfound culture, as an exercise toward integration and diversification; therefore, they chose to forgo the adoption of their new socio-environment. When they have children, their children are born into the foreign culture and most often the parents fail to relinquish their old world mentality and continually plague the new culture as being deft and unrefined. The old country mentality has neither adopted nor adapted to the foreign born childs socio-environment and the negative language most parents choose to describe the new cultures lifestyle alienates their children from their blood-born heritage and culture as well because they feel it to be intrusive and hostile. When children are both introduced and accepted into their blood-born heritage, they feel estranged and alienated because their parents failed to integrate the old and the new cultural expectations. Old world parents fail to understand their childrens frustration in regards to their blood-born culture because parents fail to integrate themselves into the new culture, therefore, creating a vacuum toward the acceptance of whom their children will develop as a whole integrated personality. The imposition of culture both old and new as evolving units is stereotyped as inflexible; therefore, the children pretend to assimilate the way their parents want them to. The children decide to integrate both the old and the new cultural and behavioral standards of expectations neither truly accepting nor belonging to one or the other; however, they assimilate as best they can.

Sandhya, means sunset in Hindi. As with most children born in the
United States, as well as those who are first generation born, has chosen nicknames; Sandhya has chosen to be called Sandy. Her mother is the only one who refuses to call her Sandy. Hunt for the Horseman is a metaphor for the hunt for self and culture in the family palace of Amrita Mahal with its many architectural secret compartments for the discovery of a 120 year old legendary ancestral toy her cousin Gaurav has created a mathematical logarithm used to search the grounds of the palace. During the hunt, Sandhya learns about her ancestral land, family and culture; she is introduced to 150 extended family members during her one week stay in India and the mystery surrounding her familys history and the land mafia.

As a reader, I felt Sandhyas immersion into the family hunt truly allowed her to learn about herself, her family and her history. You feel Sandhyas tension begin to relax as she speaks to her cousins about becoming independent from cultural bonds and expectations for a new generation of Hindi. Her ability to gain insight into her blood-born heritage and culture provided perspective on what her mother didn't know how to explain or teach her. The story captures an audience by way of the hunt for the mysterious horseman and the land mafia through historic Indian history of land rights during both the occupation and independence from Britain.
4175427
Laima Vince beautifully preserves the stories of women in wartime Lithuania. In doing so she learns the power of love in so many of their lives. Often the women had not even recounted their histories to their own children. Fascinating is how each of these compelling narratives differs; the characters having different religions, family lives and politics. Yet they all suffered and they all survived, some at peace, some forever haunted. Many were persecuted by Hitler only to survive and return to Lithuania, only to be persecuted again.

Vince realized the importance of collecting the stories of these aging women before they were lost. She effectively and emotionally weaves together her own experiences living in Lithuania--as well as her own family's history--with those of the women she meets and interviews.

Everybody needs to read this book.
1637835
A family of Jewish refugees flee to South Africa after living through a pogrom in Lithuania. The parents urge their son to move up the merchant class which has limited mobility for Jews. The family survives this mean, rough society by being White though hated, in a country where being Colored or Black is even worse. Developing a tough skin, the family tries to move up in a world where Christian Dutch and British will always be on top. The book is written in a broken English the family speaks and includes Yiddish words. It might be tough reading for some and the culture of South Africa in the 1940s isn't pretty. This book gave me a very good portrait of the time and place.
2736289
I am the grandchild of four peasant Lithuanian immigrants who came to America around 1905. This book is an absolute must read for every Lithuanian, but a great read if you are not Lithuanian. The author is open and frank about her life, her friends, and her experiences growing up in Chicago as the child of Lithuanina DPs. Written so well, the author makes you laugh one moment and jump up the next and say,"yes that is how we are". The author is open and honest about us, not masking our faults. She fearlessly talks about her battle with alcohol and her inspirational defeat of the disease. Daiva is my newest Lithuanian hero.
4592616
Taitaa olla suoraan jollain knnsohjelmalla yritetty knt. Ei tt pystynyt ollenkaan lukemaan. Lauseuden idea oli niin hukassa ettei mitn rajaa.
4485724
A great companion piece to research before traveling to Lithuania to visit embarkment points of relatives.  Not a great read, but very valuable as a jumping off book for additional, on-line reading and research.
3678062
Interesting book, but it was written in 1922 so did not live up to title -Lithuania Past and Present.
2654528
This is a great introductory phrasebook for those who are interested in the Lithuanian language. One of the best aspects of this book is the emphasized syllable in each word is underlined for many of the phrases - for those who have been learning this language you know how frustrating it can be to not know which syllable to emphasize since there is no concrete system behind that aspect. There are hundreds of phrases to learn that are mostly aimed at helping you navigate the actual country - airports, restaurants, etc, as well as general conversation. It also has brief discussions about cases, verbs, names etc - which advanced students will already know but beginners may be a little stumped by. Resources for Lith are a bit lacking, so this is a must have for any student of this language, and for the price, you can't beat it. The dictionary (Lith and English) is fairly extensive so if you enjoy translating sentences for practice it's very convenient. All in all, I'm very glad I purchased this book.  Sekms! Susimatysime vliau! (good luck, and see you later).
3784532
I do not speak Hungarian. I bought this collection for Hungarian relatives who like traditional songs, the kind you hear at Hungarian picnics or played by Hungarian bands in the United States. They did not recognize a number of the songs in the collection and thought others were quite old. So I am not sure what is in this collection. However, it makes for pleasant listening.