From Every End of This Earth: 13 Families and the New Lives They Made in America

by Steven V. Roberts

Book Overview

"[An] homage to the sacrifice generation and the children for which they make that sacrifice. . . . Roberts offers not only diversity of geography, but also diversity of experiences. . . . Roberts... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0061245623
• Release Date: November 2010
• Publisher: Harper Perennial
• Length: 323 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.3" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

From Every End of This Earth

//From Every End of This Earth// is about immigration, America, and a reminder that the two cannot be separated. Each chapter is dedicated to a different family, thirteen in total, and tells the story about why they came to this country and the shock of transitioning into a culture so different from their own. Steven V. Roberts selected people from multiple countries (China, Rwanda, Greece, and Afghanistan, to name a few) and multiple generations to interview for this book, which allows each chapter to have a different perspective on the American experience. Roberts does an excellent job of uniting the thirteen different stories into one book by separating it into five different sections - The Survivors, The International Entrepreneurs, The Business Owners, The Professionals, and The Woman - and writing an introduction for each. The style is journalistic in that it is clear and concise without being dry. There are moments that are difficult to read, but rather than being a detriment to the story, they increase its honesty. This book has been published in a time where the value of immigration is debated, and is worth reading no matter what side of the argument you support. Reviewed by Kayli Crosby

Imagration, legal, stories

My wife teaches English to speakers of other langusges, she found it very useful in adding to her cultural data base of understanging people of other cultures and their experiance fitting in.

We Are All Immigrants

The variety of backgrounds and experiences of the 13 families added to my appreciation of my grandparents.

Take a journey of courage with 13 families

Steven V Roberts writes a poignant book of thirteen individuals/families who answer the questions of why they chose to immigrant and what is it like to be an immigrant in America today. As he says in the introduction "this book is about the doers, the risk-takers, the makers of things...." I became interested in refugees while on a trip to Africa where I happened to read Angelina Jolie's: Notes from My Travels and Bill Bryson's African Diary. They got me thinking about what it must be like to totally displace yourself from everything you know and move to a strange country. Jolie speaks of her visits to refugee camps on behalf of the United Nations High Commission on Refugees and Bryson with his usual humor talks about his experiences in Africa. So From Every End of This Earth: 13 Families and the New Lives They Made in America intrigued me with its variety and global view point. The author's grandparents were all immigrants and as a child he would listen to the stories they would tell about their country of birth. His interest in ethnicity followed him throughout his career and this effort to quote the author "is a book about stories. It is not about policies or politics." In the section on "Survivors" you'll meet people who lived in the countries of Viet Nam, Rwanda, and Sierra Leon where horrendous happenings claimed their families from dismemberment to rape to murder. In desperation they sought to immigrant to some place safe. You'll find inspiring stories of international entrepreneurs from China and India. You'll see drive and ambition to succeed in the section on Business Owners from Greece, El Salvador, Ukraine, Pakistan and Mexico. And you'll meet brave, determined women in the last section on women from Afghanistan, Greece, Israel and Burma. Reading the book will give you a better understanding of choices immigrants make. For instance many thought they would go back to their homeland at some point, but ended up staying in the United States and marrying, having children. They send money back to their families and even the smallest amount by U.S. standards can make the difference in their homeland of starving or not starving. Many feel immigrants drain the system of monies that would otherwise go to citizens. The book points out that immigrants have always heavily contributed to the American economy. A snapshot view of some of the contributions can been seen in the section on entrepreneurs. The chapters on Women show very determined individuals who want to provide for their families and contribute to their home. It will give you perspectives to think about that you may have not come across. The thirteen stories are personal and show a personal journey that is also global in nature. As the author states immigration is "still one of the most challenging journeys any human being ever makes."