Claudia Moscovici

Romanticism and Postromanticism reads like what I suspect it is: a PhD dissertation (or perhaps even a Master's thesis). This explains some of the things noted by other readers, such as the dry style, a bibliography that suggests 'a survey of current scholarship,' and a division into two "parts," one presenting groundwork and the other the writer's own ideas. There's certainly nothing wrong with dissertations becoming published books; indeed, that's where a lot of great academic books originated. But this one needed a good editor. I have to agree with the reviewer who found it confusing. At times, I felt like I was being talked down to, yet at other times, I felt I was expected to have knowledge that was very specialized (and I have a decent familiarity with the English branch of Romanticism). Perhaps I'm just the wrong reader for the book; or perhaps the word "philosophy" ought to have been included in the title to give a more accurate idea of its focus.… (plus d'informations)

The title put me off reading the book. I thought it would be a boring history lesson for a place I don't know very much about. But after reading the intro and the brief history lesson in the very beginning where the author broke down the facts behind some of the story it made me realize that this is the perfect way to do history. Take actual events and throw in a little fiction to really get people connected to the story and history being told.
I won't give anything away for you but if you are reading the reviews for this then you must be interested already. This is a great book, that in a way brought home George Orwell's 1984 for me. To realize that these atrocities were happening to people and all the struggles they had to go through each and every day is heart breaking. It just goes to show that shouldn't always believe what you are told.
The story starts with the family in Romania and the son/brother has defected to France. The story progresses through what happens to the families of people who defected and then into the family making it out. The story follows the daughter Irina while she's in America and some the obstacles she faces not only when she first gets there but also years later.
The only issue I had with the book is that I hate Irina's boyfriend. The dude is a straight up creep. Me not liking a character should in no way dissuade you from reading this book. It is possibly one of the best I've read lately and I am sooooo happy I happened to receive it.… (plus d'informations)