Description
Book SynopsisIn the 1950s, baby boomer Donna Solecka Urbikas grew up in the American Midwest yearning for a “normal” American family. But her Polish-born mother and half sister had endured hunger, disease, and desperate escape from slave labour in Siberia. In this unforgettable memoir, Donna recounts her family history and her own survivor's story.
Trade ReviewPoignant and empowering. ... Refreshingly honest ... about the effects that war has on its survivors and inevitably their children."" -
Polish American Journal""Set against the background of Polish history, Urbikas recounts her mother and sister's plight of deportation, liberation, and journey through Central Asia to England and finally the United States. ... An ambitious and dense narrative."" -
Polish American Historical Review,
""Superbly records the bitter suffering both of victims of the Soviet Gulag and of displaced emigrants. In this context, Donna's teenage 'tragedy' of failing to make the cheerleading squad is particularly poignant."" - Marek Jan Chodakiewicz, author of
Between Nazis and Soviets""A primer for all who seek to understand the harrowing journey of Poles during this fateful period."" - Allen Paul, author of
Katyn: Stalin's Massacre and the Triumph of Truth""An unprecedented saga of a loving mother and her two daughters raised years and oceans apart: the older one in Soviet slavery during World War II, the younger in freedom and safety in the United States. The demons that possessed the mother in slavery- fighting like a tigress to protect her child- never left her in freedom, emotionally harming her younger daughter. A unique perspective on the tragic deportation of Poles to Siberia."" - Wesley Adamczyk, author of
When God Looked the Other WayTable of Contents
- Preface
- Map
- Introduction
- Part 1. The Generation between the Wars
- The Haunting Past
- Uneasy Peace
- The Interview
- Hiding
- Lost Lives Regained
- Birth into War
- Polish School
- The First World War
- Mothers
- Walenty and Natalia
- Operation Marriage
- Cradling Death
- The Farm
- Uncertainty
- Train Travel
- Part 2. Russia and Siberia
- The Lieutenant
- The Impact
- The Arrest
- Family Secrets
- Soviet Labor Camp
- Majorettes and Identity
- Prison without Bars
- The Longing
- Undeserved Beauty
- Homeland
- Fleeting Summer Breezes and Conspiracies
- Terms of Endearment
- The Human Commodity Market
- A Less Than Normal Childhood
- Part 3. Choices and Destiny
- Amnesty
- The Fittest Survive
- Religion
- The Guardian
- A Man of Honor
- Under Naked Skies
- Not Me
- Death in Small Doses
- Like No Other
- Numbing Existence
- War and Mental Illness
- From Here to Hell
- Part 4. Bittersweet Lessons
- I, as Savior?
- India
- The World at War
- England
- The Land of White Rice and Cinnamon
- Forever the Farm
- Reconciliation
- King Takes Rook
- Epilogue
- On Being a Mother
- Notes
- References
- Index
