For Enden af Regnbuen?
150
Skæbnefortællinger om Nulevende Danske i USA.
Af Bo Østlund..
356 pages, 231 illustrations of which 112 in full
color.
Oblong format, 8 1/2 by 12 inches, hardbound. Odense,
Forlaget Mellemgaard, 2001. Price dkk. 298.00 (c. $38.00). In Danish.
Reviewed by Jens J.
Christoffersen.
This is a remarkable
book. The reviewer, who spent a
lifetime with books and book publishing, does not recall having seen another
book on this particular subject and of this scope and degree of accomplishment.
In the foreword the
author tells briefly of the book’s genesis, from conception, to
execution, to completion. He is a journalist, and a good one, who tackled what
may have seemed to be an impossible task, namely, from his backstage location in Denmark to reach as many Danish emigrants
to USA as possible and to persuade them to tell their personal stories in their
new country, simply and with candor, for better or worse, and 150 of them did
just that.
The result is a
collection of fascinating narratives, touching upon a wide range of human fates
and experiences, in all sorts of endeavors, in all kinds of environments and
professions, some under easy circumstances, others in difficult ones, some
(most?) with a degree of success, others less so. In other words, life as we
know it.
The book is essentially
autobiographical, in that the author lets the participants tell their stories
in their own words, here and there filling in his own comments and explanations, so as to connect and hold
together the story. It then
becomes a quasi interview, almost Larry-King style, being far from a Who’s
Who litany of dry facts. But by this journalistic method the author still
manages to cram in a maximum of facts in the given space.
This reviewer has chosen
not to delve into any of the 150 individual stories, as it would defeat the
purpose. There has been an advance notice in a Danish electronic medium, based
apparently on the publisher’s advance proofs. It emphasized a number of very unusual, indeed sensational,
experiences (and there are some) but he finds that the strength of the book
lies in the caleidoscopic selection of every-day tales, candidly told. Herein
lies the possibility of the reader’s comparing with their own lives those
of immigrants with similar national roots. After all, most of us came to this good country for no reason other
than to find a good and happy life.
Let me conclude this
review with a bit of statistics. There are 150 stories of residents of 31
states. Of these an amazing 68 came from California, runners-up are Washington State with 8, Florida
with 7. Perhaps it has something to do with Silicon Valley. The rest averages
between 1 and 5. It tells me that
somehow gone is the notion that the Midwest is where the Danes are. There is a new generation and it did
not come to seek other Danes but to become full-fledged members of a strong and
free nation.
Unfortunately, this book
cannot be had from an U.S. source but must be ordered in Denmark. This reviewer
has had excellent service from Boghallen at Politikens Hus, Copenhagen. Their
e-mail address is
Write your order in English
or Danish, write info about your
credit card (number and exp.date) and specify shipping mode. Fastest way is “blå
strøm” (air parcel, c.7-10 days) shipping cost dkk.200.
Alternative is “grøn
strøm” (2-3 weeks) shipping cost dkk. 109.
The book can also be
ordered via the web at www.gad.dk