Thursday, August 07, 2003

This is the kind of review all writers dream of. I am very lucky. I come from a large family stacked with women, consisting of four sisters and twelve aunties, who have taught me how to survive in a totalitarian world in order to survive in any world. Two aunties chose to live in exile rather than face communism. I hope that one day I might share their extraordinary journeys on the road less traveled in more details with people who seem separated from my Pecharcik & Imrich families by more than two degrees ...

Book Review Cold River

Jozef Imrich's escape is breathtaking and mind-boggling. It is hard to imagine this, and, yet, with the gift of a talented guide, one is left well able to not only imagine it, but to feel it. He gives a very human face to Communism. As the book progresses, the common humanity the reader feels with the writer ceases to be unsettling and becomes enlightening.
· I relish the opportunity to share this independent review by Janet Schmidt [WomenWriting]