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American Gypsy
A vivid and funny memoir about growing up Gypsy and becoming American
Fifteen-year-old Oksana Marafioti is a Gypsy. This means touring with the family band from the Mongolian deserts to the Siberian tundra. It means getting your hair cut in “the Lioness.” It also means enduring sneering racism from every segment of Soviet society. Her father is determined that his girls lead a better, freer life. In America! Also, he wants to play guitar with B. B. King. And cure cancer with his personal magnetism. All of this he confides to the woman at the American embassy, who inexplicably allows the family entry. Soon they are living on the sketchier side of Hollywood.
What little Oksana and her sister, Roxy, know of the United States they’ve learned from MTV, subcategory George Michael. It doesn’t quite prepare them for the challenges of immigration. Why are the glamorous Kraft Singles individually wrapped? Are the little soaps in the motels really free? How do you protect your nice new boyfriend from your opinionated father, who wants you to marry decently, within the clan?
In this affecting, hilarious memoir, Marafioti cracks open the secretive world of the Roma and brings the absurdities, miscommunications, and unpredictable victories of the immigrant experience to life. With unsentimentally perfect pitch, American Gypsy reveals how Marafioti adjusted to her new life in America, one slice of processed cheese at a time.
Fifteen-year-old Oksana Marafioti is a Gypsy. This means touring with the family band from the Mongolian deserts to the Siberian tundra. It means getting your hair cut in “the Lioness.” It also means enduring sneering racism from every segment of Soviet society. Her father is determined that his girls lead a better, freer life. In America! Also, he wants to play guitar with B. B. King. And cure cancer with his personal magnetism. All of this he confides to the woman at the American embassy, who inexplicably allows the family entry. Soon they are living on the sketchier side of Hollywood.
What little Oksana and her sister, Roxy, know of the United States they’ve learned from MTV, subcategory George Michael. It doesn’t quite prepare them for the challenges of immigration. Why are the glamorous Kraft Singles individually wrapped? Are the little soaps in the motels really free? How do you protect your nice new boyfriend from your opinionated father, who wants you to marry decently, within the clan?
In this affecting, hilarious memoir, Marafioti cracks open the secretive world of the Roma and brings the absurdities, miscommunications, and unpredictable victories of the immigrant experience to life. With unsentimentally perfect pitch, American Gypsy reveals how Marafioti adjusted to her new life in America, one slice of processed cheese at a time.
384 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2012
60 people are currently reading
1810 people want to read
About the author
Oksana Marafioti
9 books59 followersI was born in the former Soviet Union, which almost makes me a relic in a sense that this memorable event took place in a country that no longer exists.
I could tell you more about my life, but it's been rather average, I think, so I'll sum up. A stage family, a childhood touring with Romani (Gypsies),moved to America at fifteen, went to Hollywood High Performing Arts Magnet School, dad opened a psychic shop and became an exorcist, mom moved to Las Vegas on a whim and became a change girl. For the unabridged version filled with awesome adventures and heroic deeds (well, it felt that way when I was a teenager) please see my memoir, American Gypsy.
I could tell you more about my life, but it's been rather average, I think, so I'll sum up. A stage family, a childhood touring with Romani (Gypsies),moved to America at fifteen, went to Hollywood High Performing Arts Magnet School, dad opened a psychic shop and became an exorcist, mom moved to Las Vegas on a whim and became a change girl. For the unabridged version filled with awesome adventures and heroic deeds (well, it felt that way when I was a teenager) please see my memoir, American Gypsy.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 118 reviews
September 17, 2012
Yes! I had requested to barrow this from the library through interloan, and they sent me a message stating that since it's new they will look into purchasing a copy for our local library! I just love it when that happens lol :)
***Review
This is by far one of my top most favorite books EVER! It's weird because even before I had read it I had no doubt in my mind this one was going to be absolutely amazing! It's not that this book gave me some profound new idea, nor the fact that Oksana lived a most unique life with an equally unique background. It's just simply amazing the way this book takes you so many different places with your emotions. Happiness, comfort, sadness, fear, love, and humor all rolled into one incredible book. I swear this book should be made into a movie!
Oksana was born into a family of entertaining gypsies living in the USSR. With an alcoholic mother, and a father who is a bit of a ladies man they travel around with her grandpa's performing gypsy troupe dancing, singing, and living the good life, well as good as one can expect living under Soviet rule. Oksana shares some of the most hilarious stories from her childhood. Performing a seance to get information for a homework assignment, losing her innocence to an underground XXX theater, and sharing the many ways to cook animal balls along with her cousin. Of course this is a real life tale though, so it can't always be fun and games. At the tender age of thirteen Oksana finally falls in love only to have her heart shattered into a thousand tiny pieces in the worst way imaginable. With this deep gaping chasm of pain in her heart Oksana sets off with her parents for America, and it's singly wrapped cheese that's so exotic, and needlessly luxurious.
Oksana Marafioti really knows how to tell a story! I was laughing by page five, and in tears not long after that. I was so sucked into this story I almost felt as if I were there observing it all in person. I love the fact that Oksana shows the sometimes hilarious side of being a foreigner as we usually only get the bad side of the story. If you're looking for a good book to read, look no further. This book has it all! Possession, gypsies, psychics, addictions, love, and on, and on...
***Review
This is by far one of my top most favorite books EVER! It's weird because even before I had read it I had no doubt in my mind this one was going to be absolutely amazing! It's not that this book gave me some profound new idea, nor the fact that Oksana lived a most unique life with an equally unique background. It's just simply amazing the way this book takes you so many different places with your emotions. Happiness, comfort, sadness, fear, love, and humor all rolled into one incredible book. I swear this book should be made into a movie!
Oksana was born into a family of entertaining gypsies living in the USSR. With an alcoholic mother, and a father who is a bit of a ladies man they travel around with her grandpa's performing gypsy troupe dancing, singing, and living the good life, well as good as one can expect living under Soviet rule. Oksana shares some of the most hilarious stories from her childhood. Performing a seance to get information for a homework assignment, losing her innocence to an underground XXX theater, and sharing the many ways to cook animal balls along with her cousin. Of course this is a real life tale though, so it can't always be fun and games. At the tender age of thirteen Oksana finally falls in love only to have her heart shattered into a thousand tiny pieces in the worst way imaginable. With this deep gaping chasm of pain in her heart Oksana sets off with her parents for America, and it's singly wrapped cheese that's so exotic, and needlessly luxurious.
Oksana Marafioti really knows how to tell a story! I was laughing by page five, and in tears not long after that. I was so sucked into this story I almost felt as if I were there observing it all in person. I love the fact that Oksana shows the sometimes hilarious side of being a foreigner as we usually only get the bad side of the story. If you're looking for a good book to read, look no further. This book has it all! Possession, gypsies, psychics, addictions, love, and on, and on...
August 17, 2012
For years my only image of the Roma people was Maria Ouspenskaya’s Gypsy in 1941’s The Wolf Man. After reading American Gypsy, my image is of a bunch of emotionally and mentally abusive alcoholic, adulterous, fortune-telling con-artists.
I’m not sure that’s an improvement or what the author intended.
American Gypsy is a memoir, an immigrant story and a peek at Gypsy culture.
Oksana Marafiote’s memoir is full of intensely unlikeable, horrible family. It’s not exactly a horror show, it’s Pat Conroy-lite with a deck of tarot cards. However, the author does not come across as unlikeable herself – which saves the book to an extent. The only point where I found Oksana is when dealing with her parent’s mysticism and especially her father’s exorcisms and fortune telling. She rejects following in his steps mostly from wanting to pursue her own American path. I wish she would have wrestled more with the fact that her father was taking advantage – thousands of dollars at a time she notes – of sick and desperate people. What the man does is despicable but there doesn’t seem much judgement against that or at least giving it much attention.
However, the daily activities of her family life aren’t all that different than most. While the parental disinterest and emotional hobbling are done with a Russian accent, it’s not uncommon, unfortunately, to have crappy addicted, divorced parents and grandparents. It just wasn’t interesting.
It is an immigrant story but I would have liked more to hear what happened after she graduates high school. Is there success? A breakthrough? She came to America, accomplished a few things against some not-so-bad adversity and then went to college. That’s very nice and she should be congratulated but does it deserve a book? I don’t know. I don’t think so. It’s also the story of her immigrant parents making their way in the USA. My only thought to that was: maybe I should rethink my open immigration stance. I wish the US. would have sent these folks back to Russia. They come here, they go on welfare, they commit crimes, they con folks. Did they take the spot of a nice Indian doctor?
The real letdown for me was that I didn’t learn anything about Roma culture or history. There’s a bit but it would have been nice to place her failed family against the history of her people. I don’t really know anything about them that I didn’t already know. If I was a Roma I’d be yelling, this isn’t us. Unless it is. If that’s so, that’s sad.
That being said, the book is written well. It’s in a nice, plain style that’s conversational. The author wrote the story in a nice, easy to read but not simplistic manner. I have some quibble with some overwrought dialogue that doesn’t have the voice of a teenager. Pacing and plotting could have been a little sharper and I felt somewhat shorted on characterizations of some of her high school friends. They seemed a blur.
I’m not sure that’s an improvement or what the author intended.
American Gypsy is a memoir, an immigrant story and a peek at Gypsy culture.
Oksana Marafiote’s memoir is full of intensely unlikeable, horrible family. It’s not exactly a horror show, it’s Pat Conroy-lite with a deck of tarot cards. However, the author does not come across as unlikeable herself – which saves the book to an extent. The only point where I found Oksana is when dealing with her parent’s mysticism and especially her father’s exorcisms and fortune telling. She rejects following in his steps mostly from wanting to pursue her own American path. I wish she would have wrestled more with the fact that her father was taking advantage – thousands of dollars at a time she notes – of sick and desperate people. What the man does is despicable but there doesn’t seem much judgement against that or at least giving it much attention.
However, the daily activities of her family life aren’t all that different than most. While the parental disinterest and emotional hobbling are done with a Russian accent, it’s not uncommon, unfortunately, to have crappy addicted, divorced parents and grandparents. It just wasn’t interesting.
It is an immigrant story but I would have liked more to hear what happened after she graduates high school. Is there success? A breakthrough? She came to America, accomplished a few things against some not-so-bad adversity and then went to college. That’s very nice and she should be congratulated but does it deserve a book? I don’t know. I don’t think so. It’s also the story of her immigrant parents making their way in the USA. My only thought to that was: maybe I should rethink my open immigration stance. I wish the US. would have sent these folks back to Russia. They come here, they go on welfare, they commit crimes, they con folks. Did they take the spot of a nice Indian doctor?
The real letdown for me was that I didn’t learn anything about Roma culture or history. There’s a bit but it would have been nice to place her failed family against the history of her people. I don’t really know anything about them that I didn’t already know. If I was a Roma I’d be yelling, this isn’t us. Unless it is. If that’s so, that’s sad.
That being said, the book is written well. It’s in a nice, plain style that’s conversational. The author wrote the story in a nice, easy to read but not simplistic manner. I have some quibble with some overwrought dialogue that doesn’t have the voice of a teenager. Pacing and plotting could have been a little sharper and I felt somewhat shorted on characterizations of some of her high school friends. They seemed a blur.
July 29, 2012
Enjoyed this book a lot. Very interesting story of a young half Roma/half Armenian girl immigrating to the US from the former Soviet Union. My only quibble was that we only got 2 years of story (until she went off to college) with quite a bit of backstory (which was good). My problem? I wanted more. Hopefully
Oksana Marafioti will go on and write further about her experience.
Oksana Marafioti will go on and write further about her experience.
July 24, 2012
Dang. Goodreads ate my review. Well, here goes, again.
I loved this book. Oksana Marafioti accomplishes in her memoir what few other memoirists are able to do. This book reads like a novel—and that's a good thing! Most memoirs are just one thing after another, each incident may be entertaining, but they are often unrelated and don't create a "story" worth following. This one is different. Marafioti successfully builds tension, drama, and even suspense. I really cared to know what happened to this cast of characters.
It's not all seances and tarot cards, but that her father is conducting exorcisms in the living room and her mother is loudly singing vodka fueled Romani songs at 3 am from the rooftop of their Hollywood bungalow only adds color to this American life story. Young Oksana wants to become a "normal American" girl but is desparate for her father's approval—who wants her to be a proper Romani woman with all that their traditions entail.
It is a memoir, but it is also a coming of age story complete with the universal themes of wanting to fit in, make friends, experience romantic love, find one's purpose in life—all of that—but with the added intricacies of being an immigrant in a strange land. Flavor the above with a crazy gypsy family that—all at the same time—she loves, is embarrassed by, and is fiercely loyal to—and it all makes for a spicier borscht.
I highly recommend this wonderful memoir by a fine up-and-coming author. It's a quick read, and one you will be thinking about long after you finish.
I loved this book. Oksana Marafioti accomplishes in her memoir what few other memoirists are able to do. This book reads like a novel—and that's a good thing! Most memoirs are just one thing after another, each incident may be entertaining, but they are often unrelated and don't create a "story" worth following. This one is different. Marafioti successfully builds tension, drama, and even suspense. I really cared to know what happened to this cast of characters.
It's not all seances and tarot cards, but that her father is conducting exorcisms in the living room and her mother is loudly singing vodka fueled Romani songs at 3 am from the rooftop of their Hollywood bungalow only adds color to this American life story. Young Oksana wants to become a "normal American" girl but is desparate for her father's approval—who wants her to be a proper Romani woman with all that their traditions entail.
It is a memoir, but it is also a coming of age story complete with the universal themes of wanting to fit in, make friends, experience romantic love, find one's purpose in life—all of that—but with the added intricacies of being an immigrant in a strange land. Flavor the above with a crazy gypsy family that—all at the same time—she loves, is embarrassed by, and is fiercely loyal to—and it all makes for a spicier borscht.
I highly recommend this wonderful memoir by a fine up-and-coming author. It's a quick read, and one you will be thinking about long after you finish.
September 26, 2012
A DELIGHTFUL MEMOIR.
“To the European Roma, we were court jesters, doormats, quacks, but the mainstream society still considered us feral despite our polite handshakes.”—page 53
I have been fascinated with Gypsy customs and culture for as long as I can remember. Probably as far back as when I was only four or five years old and my grandparents would teasingly chide that they were going to sell me to the ‘Gypsies’ if I misbehaved. The threat worked, but, even then, my mercenary curiosity couldn’t help wondering just how much a five year old might fetch on the Gypsy market.
Combine a fascination with all things Roma, with a chance to see old, familiar, places and attitudes through the fresh and innocent eyes of newly immigrated Eastern Europeans, and you have the formula for an especially delightful and enjoyable read—I.e. ‘American Gypsy: A Memoir,’ by Oksana Marafioti.
Recommendation: If Gypsy culture, or the immigrant experience, holds any appeal for you, you’ll enjoy this memoir.
“Traditionally, Romani prefer to teach their kids at home. Among them there is a commonly shared opinion, even today, that the public school system alienates kids from adults, churning out generations of disrespectful, lazy, egomaniacs who go through life without purpose.”—page 181
“Distrust, …is as much a part of Roma character as stubbornness. Smart people utilize both in moderation.”—page 125
NookBook, 317 pages
“To the European Roma, we were court jesters, doormats, quacks, but the mainstream society still considered us feral despite our polite handshakes.”—page 53
I have been fascinated with Gypsy customs and culture for as long as I can remember. Probably as far back as when I was only four or five years old and my grandparents would teasingly chide that they were going to sell me to the ‘Gypsies’ if I misbehaved. The threat worked, but, even then, my mercenary curiosity couldn’t help wondering just how much a five year old might fetch on the Gypsy market.
Combine a fascination with all things Roma, with a chance to see old, familiar, places and attitudes through the fresh and innocent eyes of newly immigrated Eastern Europeans, and you have the formula for an especially delightful and enjoyable read—I.e. ‘American Gypsy: A Memoir,’ by Oksana Marafioti.
Recommendation: If Gypsy culture, or the immigrant experience, holds any appeal for you, you’ll enjoy this memoir.
“Traditionally, Romani prefer to teach their kids at home. Among them there is a commonly shared opinion, even today, that the public school system alienates kids from adults, churning out generations of disrespectful, lazy, egomaniacs who go through life without purpose.”—page 181
“Distrust, …is as much a part of Roma character as stubbornness. Smart people utilize both in moderation.”—page 125
NookBook, 317 pages
December 22, 2013
I started American Gypsy on what was possibly the worse day of my life. My husband was scheduled for a colonoscopy due to some unsettling symptoms. I sat in the waiting room reading Oksana Marafioti's book, never expecting to be interrupted in the middle of chapter three by the doctor informing me that M. had a malignant tumor.
As may be imagined, it took me a while to return to the book much less review it. Even after the time lapse, I fell right back into the honest, heartfelt recollections of a young girl struggling to find her way in a new country. The family arrives in the United States from Russia with high hopes that are quite at odds with the reality of the hard-scrabble life that awaits them. Things get especially tough after the parents divorce. Oksana, her sister, and their mother struggle to make ends meet. But there's an even bigger challenge for Oksana as she attempts to reconcile her heritage (Gypsy culture is as idiosyncratic as it is rich) with the American life she's working so hard to build via her schooling, music, and after-school job.
I enjoyed the inside view we get of traditional Gypsy life as it existed in the Russia of Oksana's youth. It shattered stereotypes that I didn't even realize I held. The author tells her family's stories--even the hard, unhappy stories--with such humor and compassion. American Gypsy is an engaging and worthwhile read, and I can't help hoping for a sequel.
As may be imagined, it took me a while to return to the book much less review it. Even after the time lapse, I fell right back into the honest, heartfelt recollections of a young girl struggling to find her way in a new country. The family arrives in the United States from Russia with high hopes that are quite at odds with the reality of the hard-scrabble life that awaits them. Things get especially tough after the parents divorce. Oksana, her sister, and their mother struggle to make ends meet. But there's an even bigger challenge for Oksana as she attempts to reconcile her heritage (Gypsy culture is as idiosyncratic as it is rich) with the American life she's working so hard to build via her schooling, music, and after-school job.
I enjoyed the inside view we get of traditional Gypsy life as it existed in the Russia of Oksana's youth. It shattered stereotypes that I didn't even realize I held. The author tells her family's stories--even the hard, unhappy stories--with such humor and compassion. American Gypsy is an engaging and worthwhile read, and I can't help hoping for a sequel.
February 9, 2013
My first response to American Gypsy was awe at how beautifully Oksana Marafioti communicated her story in English. Her prose is lyrical and impressive—especially for a young woman who learned English as a second language in high school and by devouring romance novels. What I like about this book is that Oksana shared her memories, experiences and emotions without ever asking for pity, sympathy, approval, or even understanding from the reader.
The only criticism I have of the book is that it, unfortunately (and perhaps because of the pure honesty of its telling) reinforces some of the negative stereotypes already in place regarding the Romani culture. The image of the con artist, physic gypsy fortune teller has plagued this population for most of their history. Even the choice in the title made me wonder why the author (or the marketing department) chose to go with a term that is considered derogatory by some Roma people.
The séances and spiritual “purgings” made for good reading, but when Oksana wrote that her father and step mother made thousands of dollars off these dark events, one certainly has to wonder if the acts were more “con” than healing. I hope that people will not misinterpret the alcoholism, exorcisms, and séances to be representative of the Romani culture in general. In reality, the dysfunction described in this memoir could be any family’s, any teen girl’s embarrassment—which is the fantastic thing about literature. Books and words are universal binders. I applaud Oksana for her bravery, honesty, and courage in bringing this story to print. However, if you’re looking for a book about how the Romani live and operate in everyday life, this may not be the book for you. This is one family’s story, one young woman’s triumph.
The only criticism I have of the book is that it, unfortunately (and perhaps because of the pure honesty of its telling) reinforces some of the negative stereotypes already in place regarding the Romani culture. The image of the con artist, physic gypsy fortune teller has plagued this population for most of their history. Even the choice in the title made me wonder why the author (or the marketing department) chose to go with a term that is considered derogatory by some Roma people.
The séances and spiritual “purgings” made for good reading, but when Oksana wrote that her father and step mother made thousands of dollars off these dark events, one certainly has to wonder if the acts were more “con” than healing. I hope that people will not misinterpret the alcoholism, exorcisms, and séances to be representative of the Romani culture in general. In reality, the dysfunction described in this memoir could be any family’s, any teen girl’s embarrassment—which is the fantastic thing about literature. Books and words are universal binders. I applaud Oksana for her bravery, honesty, and courage in bringing this story to print. However, if you’re looking for a book about how the Romani live and operate in everyday life, this may not be the book for you. This is one family’s story, one young woman’s triumph.
July 2, 2012
(I pre-ordered this book through Barnes & Noble and was lucky enough to receive it a few days early).
An enlightening and inspiring read:
Unlike so many other memoirs, this book is not about placing blame on others, boasting of one’s accomplishments, or wallowing in self-pity. With the brilliantly executed purity of a professional documentary, these pages reveal life as an emigrant from the Soviet Union, an uncertain young woman, and a Roma from the perspective of the author.
Oksana Marafioti’s raw honesty is both refreshing and heart wrenching at the same time. In this book, American Gypsy, she shares her strongest memories and deepest emotions without ever asking for pity, sympathy, approval, or even understanding from the reader. If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to be a fly on the inside of someone else’s life - this book will give you that experience and what you take from it will be entirely your own as Oksana makes no attempt to sway you - and that’s a good thing!
I absolutely loved this book and no matter how badly I might have needed to at times (when sleep beckoned at 1 a.m., for example) I simply couldn’t put it down. I devoured every word; frequently reminding myself that I was reading a reality that someone had actually lived and wanting, with all my heart, for Oksana to have a happy ending while fearing that, because this is reality, she may not. I couldn’t wait to get to the final page and yet I never wanted it to end. This is a beautifully crafted work of literary art and will receive a place of respect and admiration on my shelf.
An enlightening and inspiring read:
Unlike so many other memoirs, this book is not about placing blame on others, boasting of one’s accomplishments, or wallowing in self-pity. With the brilliantly executed purity of a professional documentary, these pages reveal life as an emigrant from the Soviet Union, an uncertain young woman, and a Roma from the perspective of the author.
Oksana Marafioti’s raw honesty is both refreshing and heart wrenching at the same time. In this book, American Gypsy, she shares her strongest memories and deepest emotions without ever asking for pity, sympathy, approval, or even understanding from the reader. If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to be a fly on the inside of someone else’s life - this book will give you that experience and what you take from it will be entirely your own as Oksana makes no attempt to sway you - and that’s a good thing!
I absolutely loved this book and no matter how badly I might have needed to at times (when sleep beckoned at 1 a.m., for example) I simply couldn’t put it down. I devoured every word; frequently reminding myself that I was reading a reality that someone had actually lived and wanting, with all my heart, for Oksana to have a happy ending while fearing that, because this is reality, she may not. I couldn’t wait to get to the final page and yet I never wanted it to end. This is a beautifully crafted work of literary art and will receive a place of respect and admiration on my shelf.
April 12, 2016
I didn't think that I'd be able to finish American Gypsy: A Memoir so quickly, because it looked somewhat dense. Then, I couldn't sleep last night because I started feeling all creepy during the witching hour, so I decided to read. This turned out to be a huge mistake, because this book contains a description of an exorcism. So then I was REALLY awake, and wound up finishing the book.
I digress.
I have a track record of not really liking memoirs and biographies, but this I thoroughly enjoyed. I've always been fascinated by gypsies. OK, by the American perception of gypsies (My introduction to gypsies was Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame, can you blame me for knowing the stereotype better than the truth?). I do avoid TLC shows like the plague, so at least I didn't have much of that other stereotype rolling around in my head.
This is real, and it's great. It's less about Oksana Marafioti assimilating into America, and more about her coming to terms with her own Romani roots. She figures out how to compromise her "Old World" culture with the "New World" of modern America, and I think that's awesome.
I digress.
I have a track record of not really liking memoirs and biographies, but this I thoroughly enjoyed. I've always been fascinated by gypsies. OK, by the American perception of gypsies (My introduction to gypsies was Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame, can you blame me for knowing the stereotype better than the truth?). I do avoid TLC shows like the plague, so at least I didn't have much of that other stereotype rolling around in my head.
This is real, and it's great. It's less about Oksana Marafioti assimilating into America, and more about her coming to terms with her own Romani roots. She figures out how to compromise her "Old World" culture with the "New World" of modern America, and I think that's awesome.
November 3, 2013
Honestly, no offense to the author, this might be the raggediest memoir I have ever read--story all over the place, gobs of jumbled memories, too many characters, charming sentences that are grammatic nightmares. She a concert pianist but rarely mentions practicing or playing piano. That being said, Oksana Marafioti's story is immensely interesting and necessary. Since Roma have made news lately, American Gypsy is timely and topical.
Funny thing...She says one of the most endearing traits she found in American students is that they don't know anything about other cultures. Because of their "ignorance," they didn't know to show prejudice against Romani people. I'll never stop encouraging high school kids to step out of whatever little box they live in and learn about other people. American Gypsy is a good addition to our school library.
Funny thing...She says one of the most endearing traits she found in American students is that they don't know anything about other cultures. Because of their "ignorance," they didn't know to show prejudice against Romani people. I'll never stop encouraging high school kids to step out of whatever little box they live in and learn about other people. American Gypsy is a good addition to our school library.
August 20, 2012
I really enjoyed this book, though I rarely read memoirs. So much insight into the immagration struggles - particularly the work which goes into learning the language. If you think you know about the Gypsy culture, whether in the US or back in the "Old Country," you've got quite a surprise coming when reading this book. Oksana dispells so many of the myths, confirms a few, and shows you that the "reality" tv shows are a bit of a put-on for entertainment value.
It's a quick read, she keeps your interest throughout, and makes you care about the people in her story - even the ones who are not so nice! I find myself wanting to know what happened beyond the author's move to Las Vegas, what happened to the second love of her life, and how she moved into cinematography.
It's a quick read, she keeps your interest throughout, and makes you care about the people in her story - even the ones who are not so nice! I find myself wanting to know what happened beyond the author's move to Las Vegas, what happened to the second love of her life, and how she moved into cinematography.
September 9, 2012
American Gypsy was such a good, entertaining and interesting book!! I love the way Oksana writes. You never have any question in your mind what she is saying. I have such admiration for her coming to this country as a teen and adjusting to our culture when it was so different from the one she left behind. I just can't imagine many teens that could do that. Thank you Oksana for being so open with your readers and sharing your life with us. And thank you Goodreads for another AWESOME free giveaway!
September 1, 2016
I read this for my book club - and it was ok but not what I expected. I thought it would be about a girl raised in a gypsy family in the US - I know there are gypsy's in the US and would like to read about their culture. Instead it was about a young girl who was part gypsy who immigrated from Russia with her parents and is trying to adjust to the US while also walking the line between her old culture and her new culture - in other words a typical immigrant's story.
That doesn't make it not interesting or not a good read - it just wasn't what I was looking for.
That doesn't make it not interesting or not a good read - it just wasn't what I was looking for.
October 15, 2012
The most interesting part of this book was the life lived in Russia, love the Russian words, and the perception of gypsy life in both countries. Another book of children raised by disfunctional and/or alcoholic parents but these kids had more of a "normal" life than most I've read - they did get to eat and go to school.
December 9, 2012
Wonderful tale of a Gypsy family and their move to L.A. when the author fifteen-years old, spoke very little english, and whose only impression of America was from an occasional black-market magazine. Funny, wry, an amazing story of courage and conviction. You will laugh and cry and be amazed at the resiliency of Okasana.
Want to read
July 14, 2012I can't wait to read this new release from the very talented Oksana Marafioti, a long time member of my Las Vegas Writers Group. She has such an amazing story and I am looking forward to reading it in book form.
September 5, 2012
Good story. A little heartbroken that she let Cruz go.
August 15, 2012
I couldn't get into it so stopped reading.
May 12, 2013
Really wanted to like this book, but it took the author too long to tell the story. I felt like some chapters were just repeats of others.
December 30, 2013
Couldn't finish this one
June 23, 2013
Book did not sustain my interest due mainly to the organization I think.
May 28, 2024
I feel like this was a 3.5 for me. It was a coming of age story, a portrait of her family, and memoir. I loved the images she created of her family using words and stories, interweaving them with the actual photos of them. I enjoyed learning the history surrounding her people and early childhood. But...the writing style wasn't my favorite. Even though we read all these stories of her family I felt like there was a 2-dimentionalness throughout the whole book. I appreciated that although racism is such a large part of her childhood and upbringing, she contextualized it from the perspective of the "character" she was creating. I think too often authors feel compelled to bring in topics that don't add to the book simply to show their "awareness", and for this reason they are unable to go into them to the degree that they deserve. I think some might feel opposite-that she is ignoring the greater social context. But, she never negates this context, choosing to simply share her perspectives and experiences as a 15 year old immigrant.
July 12, 2012
Original review posted on The Book Smugglers
And now for something completely different as I try to write my first review of a memoir.
Oksana was 15 when her parents decided to leave Russia (just before the USSR was dissolved) for America in search of a better life. Although they were rather affluent people, they were treated like second class citizens back home due to their part-Gypsy ancestry. Oksana’s parents were part of a touring band: the father a gifted Roma musician and the mother an accomplished band manager from Armenia. When the family moves to the US, they hope to leave all problems behind and start anew in the land of opportunity. Unfortunately things are not that easy and theirs plans don’t go as smoothly as they hope. There is the language barrier to start with not to mention all the cultural baggage they brought along.
Conflicts follow them to America: her mother’s alcoholism, her father’s propensity to cheat, their different nationalities and backgrounds still a source of problem. And Oksana stands in the middle: the only one who speaks a little of English, a child of different cultures, a supposed soviet in the middle of capitalist America and a girl trying to find her own identity in the middle of all this chaos.
If qualifications are necessary at all, I would call this a Young Adult memoir as it is framed and limited by Oksana’s high school years. The memoir starts when she is fifteen and stops as she is about to go to college – it often goes back in time to early childhood but rarely if ever do we get to see a glimpse of Oksana’s older years.
I chose to read American Gypsy for a number of reasons: I liked the idea of venturing into memoir territory, a new thing for me. I feel like it is impossible to write this review of a very personal story without making it personal too – it is as though after having received what I consider to be a gift from the author, I just have to return it by speaking a bit about myself. I chose to read this memoir in particular because 1) it was offered to me and 2) it sounded interesting. The former only made it easy. The latter because just like the author, I am too an immigrant (from Brazil to England) and wanted to hear about her experience. And as it just so happens, I have always been fascinated by not only Russia (and especially how so many different cultures and peoples were brought together under one rule) but also by Gypsies. In Brazil, we have this fascination for Gypsies: I remember when my mother used to take me to a “Gypsy” store and buy me flowery “Gypsy” clothes.“Gypsy” is also a very common Carnaval costume and I dressed up with long skirt, huge earrings and dangling bracelets more than once.
Of course now I know, this is all embarrassingly stereotypical bulshit and tremendously offensive: we obviously knew absolutely nothing about the Romani people and more often than not, most people don’t either. Which is a point that comes brilliantly across when reading American Gypsy as Oksana navigates the assumptions and prejudices that her people suffer. To the point where, to start with, she doesn’t even admit that she is Gypsy.
That said, this book is much more than the exploration of the macro-cosmos of a culture backdrop – as a memoir, it is more about Oksana and how her life progresses as she moves to America. As a teenager, she is often trapped by her parents’ wants and desires for her. She had to navigate the waters of a traditional Romani father who has certain expectations about what a girl, a daughter should or rather; could accomplish. It is heartbreaking to read about how Oksana felt the need to earn her father’s admiration for what she could do as an accomplished musician herself. The conflict between learned tradition and obvious desire for change and progress is not an easy one to solve and this memoir was great at showing that. This story follows Oksana as she tries to find a place for herself fighting a cultural assimilation that clashes with her family’s past (whose outlandish stories she is proud to share) and trying to find a measure of individualisation in the midst of such strong traditions.
American Gypsy actually reads like a novel and at times I forgot I was reading about real people – and it is weird and a bit funny for me to be saying this because of how many times I’ve said the opposite about a novel (“it was so good I felt the characters were real people”). There is a lot of dialogue, and outlandish, funny adventures as well as some heartbreak and serious moments.
At the risk of sounding trite: I loved reading American Gypsy. It is extremely well-written, gripping and I couldn’t put it down. I loved reading about Oksana’s story: her path to individualism and independence; her troubled relationship with her parents, a relationship of love but one with charged expectations about her gender – in that sense, this book is also a great feminist read.
More than that, from a very personal and self-centred strand-point, I loved this from a ContempYA perspective. I have gotten used to reading these fictional stories about identity and fitting in and it is really interesting to read a real story of a teenager who has the same problems I usually read about in YA. In that sense, reading this book helps me reading ContempYA – from a reviewer point of view. But above all, I loved her voice, I loved the cultural differences explored in the book, I loved Oksana’s strive for independence and I am so glad I gave the book a shot.
And now for something completely different as I try to write my first review of a memoir.
Oksana was 15 when her parents decided to leave Russia (just before the USSR was dissolved) for America in search of a better life. Although they were rather affluent people, they were treated like second class citizens back home due to their part-Gypsy ancestry. Oksana’s parents were part of a touring band: the father a gifted Roma musician and the mother an accomplished band manager from Armenia. When the family moves to the US, they hope to leave all problems behind and start anew in the land of opportunity. Unfortunately things are not that easy and theirs plans don’t go as smoothly as they hope. There is the language barrier to start with not to mention all the cultural baggage they brought along.
Conflicts follow them to America: her mother’s alcoholism, her father’s propensity to cheat, their different nationalities and backgrounds still a source of problem. And Oksana stands in the middle: the only one who speaks a little of English, a child of different cultures, a supposed soviet in the middle of capitalist America and a girl trying to find her own identity in the middle of all this chaos.
If qualifications are necessary at all, I would call this a Young Adult memoir as it is framed and limited by Oksana’s high school years. The memoir starts when she is fifteen and stops as she is about to go to college – it often goes back in time to early childhood but rarely if ever do we get to see a glimpse of Oksana’s older years.
I chose to read American Gypsy for a number of reasons: I liked the idea of venturing into memoir territory, a new thing for me. I feel like it is impossible to write this review of a very personal story without making it personal too – it is as though after having received what I consider to be a gift from the author, I just have to return it by speaking a bit about myself. I chose to read this memoir in particular because 1) it was offered to me and 2) it sounded interesting. The former only made it easy. The latter because just like the author, I am too an immigrant (from Brazil to England) and wanted to hear about her experience. And as it just so happens, I have always been fascinated by not only Russia (and especially how so many different cultures and peoples were brought together under one rule) but also by Gypsies. In Brazil, we have this fascination for Gypsies: I remember when my mother used to take me to a “Gypsy” store and buy me flowery “Gypsy” clothes.“Gypsy” is also a very common Carnaval costume and I dressed up with long skirt, huge earrings and dangling bracelets more than once.
Of course now I know, this is all embarrassingly stereotypical bulshit and tremendously offensive: we obviously knew absolutely nothing about the Romani people and more often than not, most people don’t either. Which is a point that comes brilliantly across when reading American Gypsy as Oksana navigates the assumptions and prejudices that her people suffer. To the point where, to start with, she doesn’t even admit that she is Gypsy.
That said, this book is much more than the exploration of the macro-cosmos of a culture backdrop – as a memoir, it is more about Oksana and how her life progresses as she moves to America. As a teenager, she is often trapped by her parents’ wants and desires for her. She had to navigate the waters of a traditional Romani father who has certain expectations about what a girl, a daughter should or rather; could accomplish. It is heartbreaking to read about how Oksana felt the need to earn her father’s admiration for what she could do as an accomplished musician herself. The conflict between learned tradition and obvious desire for change and progress is not an easy one to solve and this memoir was great at showing that. This story follows Oksana as she tries to find a place for herself fighting a cultural assimilation that clashes with her family’s past (whose outlandish stories she is proud to share) and trying to find a measure of individualisation in the midst of such strong traditions.
American Gypsy actually reads like a novel and at times I forgot I was reading about real people – and it is weird and a bit funny for me to be saying this because of how many times I’ve said the opposite about a novel (“it was so good I felt the characters were real people”). There is a lot of dialogue, and outlandish, funny adventures as well as some heartbreak and serious moments.
At the risk of sounding trite: I loved reading American Gypsy. It is extremely well-written, gripping and I couldn’t put it down. I loved reading about Oksana’s story: her path to individualism and independence; her troubled relationship with her parents, a relationship of love but one with charged expectations about her gender – in that sense, this book is also a great feminist read.
More than that, from a very personal and self-centred strand-point, I loved this from a ContempYA perspective. I have gotten used to reading these fictional stories about identity and fitting in and it is really interesting to read a real story of a teenager who has the same problems I usually read about in YA. In that sense, reading this book helps me reading ContempYA – from a reviewer point of view. But above all, I loved her voice, I loved the cultural differences explored in the book, I loved Oksana’s strive for independence and I am so glad I gave the book a shot.
February 28, 2018
I liked this book! After having watched several seasons of "My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding", "My Big Fat American Gypsy Wedding" and "Gypsy Sisters", I wanted to learn more of them. I soon realized that the Gypsy culture of those shows, about people native to the countries that they lived in when the shows were shot, was nothing like what Oksana Maraaioti experienced. In addition to learning of her experiences, this was also about a young woman experiencing Soviet Russia, and transitioning to the America of the 1990s. I learned much of Soviet Russia in its last days, and what it was like to be a young immigrant in 1990s. This is a very good book, not just for those interested in Gypsys, but those interested in the wider experience of a modern (relatively) immigrant coming from Soviet Russia. My only objection is that it ended way too soon! I wanted to know what happened to her after her high school graduation when she moved from Los Angeles to Las Vegas!! I highly recommend this book: not your run of the mill biography!
March 24, 2019
One of the most captivating, informative, and **interesting** memoirs I’ve read in a while—I’m surprised the goodreads rating is so low? Maybe it was bc I knew little more than stereotypes about the Roma before I started reading, but I actually thought the author did a stellar job at educating her reader while telling a batshit insane story that hooked me immediately. She’s funny and makes her unique journey accessible.
I saw a couple of comments mention how horrible they found the author’s relatives, how they were turned off by her description of the Roma, etc...but she’s just sharing her experience of what happened?
I’d recommend for sure.
I saw a couple of comments mention how horrible they found the author’s relatives, how they were turned off by her description of the Roma, etc...but she’s just sharing her experience of what happened?
I’d recommend for sure.
December 31, 2014
I'm fascinated with gypsies. I have a thing with groups outside the mainstream-Amish, snake handlers, Shakers, etc. So I was all over this. I find the Irish Travelers more interesting, so this book taught me a lot about the Roma, which was very interesting. They have a very rich culture. She tells a good story and is a likable heroine. My issue with the book was the unrelenting dysfunction, fighting, drinking and violence. If she wrote the book in hopes of improving the image of gypsies, she did not succeed. But it was a worthwhile book overall.
March 14, 2017
Bookclub selection for Feb 2017- by the cover I would have never picked it up. The educational aspect of the style was infomative, but the constant back and forth flow of the authors style of writing (past to current )was monotonous. I enjoyed the book, found the education of the plight of the immigrant family realistic - not driven to seek out authors other works though.
July 23, 2017
A beautiful narrative of lived experience offering an insight into the Romany culture and navigating the complexities of politics, prejudice, tradition, and identity. Oksana offers a tragicly poignant and surprisingly familiar tale of growing up in a world in between everything, while finding where you belong.
September 7, 2018
Three-line review: I met Marafioti and bought her book long before we ever thought to move to Eastern Europe, but I particularly enjoyed it because of references I understand from living in Ukraine. Her coming-of-age story is poignant and shocking while still being impressively normal for any teenager growing up in America. Very readable and enjoyable; a solid 4-star recommendation.
July 29, 2012
A wonderful coming of age story from a young Russian Gypsy immigrant. I felt like a voyeur looking through a window in her home witnessing the drama of being an immigrant and on top of that a Gypsy. This is a great book from a talented author. I hope she writes more, soon!
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