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Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
September 2007
On Sale: August 21, 2007
56 pages
ISBN: 0374347018
EAN: 9780374347017
Hardcover
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Childrens
Γ’β¬ΕI was born at the beginning of it all, on the Red sideΓ’β¬βthe Communist sideΓ’β¬βof the Iron Curtain.Γ’β¬Β Through annotated illustrations, journals, maps, and dreamscapes, Peter SΓΒs shows what life was like for a child who loved to draw, proudly wore the red scarf of a Young Pioneer, stood guard at the giant statue of Stalin, and believed whatever he was told to believe. But adolescence brought questions. Cracks began to appear in the Iron Curtain, and news from the West slowly filtered into the country. SΓΒs learned about beat poetry, rock Γ’β¬β’nΓ’β¬β’ roll, blue jeans, and Coca-Cola. He let his hair grow long, secretly read banned books, and joined a rock band. Then came the Prague Spring of 1968, and for a teenager who wanted to see the world and meet the Beatles, this was a magical time. It was short-lived, however, brought to a sudden and brutal end by the Soviet-led invasion. But this brief flowering had provided a glimpse of new possibilitiesΓ’β¬βcreativity could be discouraged but not easily killed. By joining memory and history, SΓΒs takes us on his extraordinary journey: from infant with paintbrush in hand to young man borne aloft by the wings of his art.
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