Laughing All the Way to Freedom

Professor emeritus at Hunter College of the City University of New York, Emil Draitser is an award-winning author of artistic and scholarly prose. Besides his 16 books, he has published essays and short stories in the Los Angeles Times, Partisan Review, Kenyon Review, North American Review, Prism International, World Literature Today, and others. He lives in West New York, New Jersey.

“Part memoir, part comparative psychology, part humor anthology,Laughing All the Way to Freedom is a fascinating delight. While recalling his early and lasting impressions of his adopted country, Draitser subjects his own formidable oeuvre as a satirical author—both pre- and post-emigration—to an insightful re-examination. While revisiting these wonderful texts, he gives us a sincere and illuminating retrospective account of the immigrant experience, including the mixed joy and apprehension of unexpectedly being able to visit his homeland (and beloved city of Odessa) again, after having found the courage to leave it forever. The recent and ongoing terrible events in Ukraine and Russia give the book an additional, almost unbearable poignancy.”—Dr. Seth Graham, University College London, School of Slavonic and East European Studies

• Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsNotes on Transliteration and TranslationForeword by Konstantin V. KustanovichPrefacePart I. Farewell, Step-Mother Russia1. My Inner Emigration2. “Lessons of Montreal”3. “Dust”Part II. Discovering America4. “Increditability”5. Buying a Used Soul6. “He Won’t Make It”7. Forbidden Laughter8. Looking for an American Friend9. “On the bumpy road to love”Part III. Discovering Self in America10. Law as a Carriage Drawbar11. Blacksmiths of Happiness12. “Save Kisa!”13. “How Much for a Dozen of Insults?”14. “Footmall”IV. The Road to Americanization15. “Comrade Millionaire”16. “Disappearance”17. Who Are You?AfterwordChapter NotesBibliographyIndex