A Mountain of Crumbs

Posted on 13 December 2017 by Elena Gorokhova

Elena Gorokhova grows up in 1960 s Leningrad where she discovers that beauty and passion can be found in unexpected places in Soviet Russia.A Mountain of Crumbs is the moving story of a young Soviet girl s discovery of the hidden truths of adulthood and her country s profound political deception Elena, born with a desire to explore the world beyond her borders, finds her passion in the complexity of the English language but in the Soviet Union of the 1960s, such a passion verges on the subversive Elena s home is no longer the majestic Russia of literature or the tsars Instead, it is a nation humiliated by its first faltering steps after World War II, putting up appearances for the sake of its regime and fighting to retain its pride In this deeply affecting memoir, Elena re creates the world that both oppressed and inspired her She recounts stories passed down to her about the horrors of the Bolshevik Revolution and probes the daily deprivations and small joys of her family s bunkerlike existence Through Elena s captivating voice, we learn not only the personal story of Russia in the second half of the twentieth century, but also the story of one rebellious citizen whose love of a foreign language finally transports her to a new world This moving memoir made me cry The New York Times Download A Mountain of Crumbs by Elena Gorokhova – kino-fada.fr This story, written by a non native English speaker, thoroughly captivated me Clearly it is a memoir, without the usual full details found in an autobiography Elena Gorokhova has conveyed tangibly and charmingly how her life was growing up in the USSR during the 50 s and 60 s until her immigration to America The states of hopelessness, oppression and deception, which were features of everyday life for her, were related with candor and humor.It appears that while still a young child, Gorokhova This story, written by a non n...The Russian Equivalent of Angela s Ashes Billy Collins Yeah, that quote right there should have warned me that I was just not going to be entranced by this memoir The relationship between Elena and her mother was basically the central theme , but it s pretty common mother daughter relationship problems In fact, Elena lived a fairly ordinary life with very ordinary sentiments about coming of age under a very strict Communist government Maybe that is what is supposed to shock me I can certain The Russian Equivalent of Angela s Ashes Billy Collins Yeah, that quote right there should have warned me that I was just not going to be entranced by this memoir The relations...3.5 stars The first half of this book I would rate 5 stars, I really enjoyed Elena s early childhood memories and the stories of her mother and grandmother, their daily rituals, meals and philosophies I loved the details of their food, the school memories and Elena s perception of those around her.For me, half way th...NO SPOILERSMy final opinion is that this was a deeply honest and humorous autibiograohy It extremely well depicts life behind the Iron Curtain during the 70s and 80s The crooked truth, the need to hide your true thoughts, the need to pretend were fundamental to life in Russia at this time I had a hard time choosing 4 or 5 stars, but have chosen 4 While I sat there rading, I most often was thoroughly enjoying myself, but sometimes I felt it needed some editing Some descriptions were excessiv NO SPOILERSMy final opinion is that this was a deeply honest and humorous autibiograohy It extremely well depicts life behind the Iron Curtain during the 70s and 80s The crooked truth, the need to hide your true thoughts, the need to pretend were fundamental to life in Russia at this time I had a hard time choosing 4 or 5 stars, but have chosen 4 While I sat there rading, I most often was thoroughly enjoying myself, but sometimes I felt it needed some editin...Gorokhova s memoir of growing up in Soviet Russia.Initially, I really liked this book I particularly enjoyed Gorokhova s stories about her mother s younger days and about her own childhood in Leningrad As the author plunged on into her adulthood, however, I started to grow bored, and eventually found myself skimming a bit toward the end.I m still a bit confused as to why Gorokhova was so desperate to leave the USSR Because she couldn t buy pantyhose and mayonnaise That s kind of how it came Gorokhova s memoir of growing up in Soviet Russia.Initially, I really liked this book I particularly enjoyed Gorokhova s stories about her mother s younger days and about her own childhood in Leningrad As the author plunged on into her adulthood, however, I started to grow bored, and eventually found myself skimming a bit toward the end.I m still a bit confused as to why Gorokhova was so desperate to leave the USSR Because she couldn t buy pantyhose and mayonnaise That s kind of how it came across While the look into her childhood was fascinating, she actually made it sound rather nice It never seemed like she was in mortal fear of her life Yes, she grew up rather modestly, but good grief, her family had a summer home I know people who grew up in free society who were raised with far less And so the older she got, the harder time I had con...There are some insightful moments, some that could be Everywoman s story and some that can only be Sovietwoman s I like the Russian sayings that the older generation used like If you knew where you d fall, you d put down some straw Or When things are good, don t search for better The concept ofvranyo keeps coming up, the idea of pretending things are straight even when you know they re crooked and everyone else knows they re crooked but everyone keeps acting as though...I never thought I d read a memoir on growing up and coming of age in Leningrad in 1960s 70s written in English as opposed to in Russian All the same, I loved Gorokhova s wonderful prose with humorous overtones and very clever use of Russian words and transliterations I had a feeling that the author was describing some of my school and childhood experiences, even though I am 15 years younger than she is A treat to anyone who grew up in the former Soviet Union or any other person who simply w I never thought I d read a ...Couldn t put this down, and I don t think it s because I m Russian The beauty of language captivated me It reads like a novel, and there is so much heart and warmth and at the same time starkness in this book, that it will stay with you for a long time I know it will stay with me.I didn t like this book as much as I thought I would The book is beautifully written, and there are a few charming stories from Lena s childhood, but overall, it was a dull and sometimes frustrating read The book is pretty slow paced, and there was not really anything overly exciting that happened in Lena s life There was the time her father passed away, but she didn t write much about it It was written almost as a fact, with not much detail about her actual grieving process, other than an I didn t like this book as much as I thought I would The book is beautifully written, and there are a few charming stories from Lena s childhood, but overall, it was a dull and sometimes frustrating read The book is pretty slow paced, and there was not really anything overly exciting that happened in Lena s life There was the time her father passed away, but she didn t write much about it It was written almost as a fact, with not much detail about her actual grieving process, other than an occasional thought about him from time to time throughout her life There was also the summer she ...Published by Star Tribune, review written by Laurie Hertzel Even if Elena Gorokhova weren t such a gorgeous writer, her memoir, A Mountain of Crumbs, would be a terrific read Gorokhova grew up in the Soviet Union in the 1960s and 70s, where her life was unremarkable in many ways Her mother was a doctor, her father a member of the Communist Party, her older sister hoped to be an actress The family lived in a Leningrad apartment, waited in line for consumer goods such an i...

English
13 December 2017

Elena Gorokhova