From Where We Came

The collapse of the Russian Empire in 1917 had devastating consequences for millions of its subjects, many of whom fled from the violent chaos, becoming known as White Russian emigres. While their stories have been widely chronicled, less well known are the stories of the so-called Second Wave of Russian emigrants, who were swept across Europe as refugees in the wake of World War II. From Where We Came brings together the memoirs of five members of an extended Russian family who remained in the USSR between 1917 and 1943 but subsequently escaped from Soviet rule, ultimately settling in the United States after enduring decades of communism, war, and life in refugee camps. The volume features intensely personal stories of suffering and survival, loss and redemption, adding to our understanding of the horrors of Stalinism, the Russian Diaspora, and the refugee experience.