What is it like to pack for a
destination unknown? To leave a war torn home, unsure if you’ll ever return?
These are the questions faced by the protagonist in Marina Antropow Cramer’s
novel Roads. The author read excerpts
from her novel and answered questions at the Fullerton Center for Culture &
History in Newburgh on Saturday June 24.
Set in Yalta and Germany during the
World War II, the story follows Filip, a young Russian man whose life is put on
hold by the war. Filip dreams of going to university to make his mark in the
world as an architect, but is stopped by the war which robs him of the some of
the most formative years of his life and now he and his family can only try to
stay alive.
Antropow Cramer talked about the political
climate of the region during Nazi descent into Filip’s homeland and how
families had few options. An excerpt illustrated the family considering what to
take when they realized abandoning home was imminent. They questioned what
would happen to the items they left behind. Even if refugees were given the chance
to return home they found it much different than before they left.
The author talked about how most
books explore a question or seek to help people better understand something.
Her book’s theme centers around the plight of refugees. Antropow Cramer was born into a family
of refugees from the Soviet Union
She had heard stories and as she
would explain her ancestry, realized she didn’t know the material well. ”When
you don’t know much, it shows when you try to explain it to someone else,” she
said.
The book is not about her family,
but is set around the experience shared by her ancestors. Armed with the
knowledge that stories can be nostalgic and romanticized when passed down through
the oral tradition, she first made sure the historical framework of dates and events
was accurate. Antropow Cramer visited the area, but not Yalta itself, and she
encouraged us to question if that fact is an advantage or not. Would actually
being there help the author tell the story? The Yalta of today is much
different than the Yalta of the 1940s.
The title “Roads” stems from a 1945
song dealing with war, brotherhood, and losing and leaving people. Song, food
and stories are a common thread of the refugee tapestry. Does the story have a
happy ending? The author says that’s a matter of interpretation.
Marina Antropow Cramer: www.marinaantropowcramer.com
Fullerton Center for Culture &
History: www.fullertonculturalcenter.wordpress.com
ReplyDeleteThank you, Lauren, for this excellent piece. It was gratifying to have the opportunity to talk with readers in such a beautiful space.