A Road Called Down on Both Sides: Growing up in Ethiopia and America

by Caroline Kurtz

Caroline Kurtz grew up in the remote mountains of Maji, Ethiopia in the 1950s. Inside her mud adobe home with her missionary parents and three sisters, she enjoyed American family life. Outside, her world was shaped by drums and the joy cry; Jeep and mule treks into the countryside; ostriches on the air strip; and the crackle of several Ethiopian languages she barely understood but longed to learn.

Caroline felt she’d been exiled to a foreign country when she went to Illinois for college. She returned to Ethiopia to teach, only to discover how complex working in another culture and language really is. Life under a Communist dictatorship meant constant outages—water, electricity, sugar, even toilet paper. But she was willing to do anything, no matter how hard, to live in Ethiopia again. Yet the chaos only increased—guerillas marched down from the north, their t-shirts crisscrossed by Kalashnikov bandoliers. When peace returned, Caroline got the chance she’d longed for, to revisit that beloved childhood home in Maji. But maybe it would have been better just to treasure the memories.

Genres: Nonfiction, Ethiopia, Africa, Memoir

302 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2019

Reviews

[Lorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully written memoir. Creatively crafted with clever choice of diction.

Caroline took me on her journey of growing up in Ethiopia. Assimilating in the culture and the way of life. Listening to the languages she at first, didn't understand, but hearing them with her heart.

Later, she moves to America, to attend college, where she feels like an outsider. Returning to Ethiopia later on, the political chaos forces her to re-evalute her choices.

This is a story with a global appeal. A story which speaks to her many freedoms. Freedom of choice. Freedom of mobility. The many freedoms millions of people, the world over, do not enjoy.

This memoir will force the reader to introspect. To take a clearer look into the country and nations one lives in. You can't read this without checking your privilege. Whether black or white.

Beautiful written with a veiled musicality brought on by the lyrical notes in the words.

Highly recommended.

[M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book and found it quite interesting. The American author and her siblings grew up in Ethiopia, the daughter of a Presbyterian missionary stationed in a remote area of the country. Her family lived through a revolution and a variety of lesser political issues. All the way through, the Ethopians were friendly and helpful. She left Ethiopia to go to college in the US and got her teaching credentials. She became a political rebel, very common in the late 60's and early 70's, pushing for justice for all but she missed the goodwill and kindness of the Ethiopian people. Ultimately she and her husband and children returned to Ethiopia where she taught English for many years.
This book is part autobiography and part modern Ethiopian history but the writing has a warmth and spark that made me keep reading. There are insights into what it means to be a missionary kid, needing to be an example and trying to live a sort-of Western life in a very much non-Western culture. And then how does that same person, acculturated into a rural, comparatively primitive African society fit into the modern college life in the US? How does someone bridge that cultural gap and do justice to each side? The author's interactions with her neighbors and parents and sisters (the brother wasn't born until later in the book) made the people seem very real and I wanted to know what was going to happen next and why.
It's a quick read and a good read for anyone interested in other cultures and other ways of doing things, in this case as viewed through the eyes of someone born into a very different world. It could also be thought of in an opposite sort of way--someone from another culture living in the US and trying to figure out how to fit in.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Non fiction. An authentic and truthful, it seemed, story of growing up as a missionary child. All the wonders, fears, frights, and displacement described in one book. Great cultural study and changes over a lifetime. I know nothing about Ethiopian history or the people. And Ethiopia seldom makes the news today. Time for some research.

[aqeelah ❀༉˖ · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Tragedy strikes, and whether we're directly affected or not, the living go on living. Playing, eating, sleeping. Reaching out for love."

I don't often read non-fiction, but one of my 2021 goals is to branch out of my reading comfort zone and explore genres that I wouldn't usually opt for, like non-fiction. As someone who loves the feeling of losing oneself in a fictional world, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book! Maybe it's because the author's life was filled with so much excitement, trauma and adventure that I quite forgot I was reading something real and non-fictional. This didn't feel like the memoir of someone's very real and tangible experiences, it felt like reading the life story of some tragic and adventurous heroine!

"I look back and feel retroactively protective of this girl, who tucked away her real feelings and trotted obediently along the path the grown-ups laid out, assuming they knew what was best for her."

This is a book about love and pain, hope and fear, family and identity. The author starts as a young American girl who migrates to Ethiopia at a very young age with her missionary parents. The eldest of 6 siblings, Caroline had to "grow up" way too soon and lived a life lacking in the parental tenderness and affection she craved. She had to be the smart and responsible one. The good girl. And so began a heartbreaking life of perfectionism and insecurity, never completely belonging in either America or Ethiopia.

"Life is so tenuous. Sooner or later we're all brought to our knees by sorrow or tragedy. Is it any wonder that we need to believe in something larger than ourselves to keep hope alive?"

As the daughter of Christian missionaries, a large part of this book follows the author's spiritual journey with her faith and beliefs. It is not the typical tale of a rigid, religious family that one might expect of a missionary family. This story is rich in spontaneous adventures, powerful emotions and constant trauma that even has Caroline questioning this omnipotent God. As a life story spanning decades and continents, the storyline is rich in history, both that which the author experienced and that which she learnt. Caroline Kurtz life story is so extraordinary that I often found myself asking: can this really be someone's factual life?

As to be expected from a non-fiction, many people influenced the author's life. I lost track of the many names and many places. I found myself confused by the changing timelines, as the author jumped from one astonishing experience to another in no particular order. It might just be my inexperience in reading non-fiction, but I was often left feeling baffled at what exactly was going on and when exactly the events were transpiring.

Nevertheless, a powerful and touching story. Why did no one tell me non-fiction could be this exhilarating?

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the adventure I would love to have had but since Caroline Kurtz has written the story so beautifully and with such detail, I don’t feel like I missed out on much. From the moment her 5 year old eyes set sight on Maji, Ethiopia where her missionary parents have taken their young family and mother’s bedroom set, Caroline didn’t miss much of the fun and excitement. The early years are full of play and fun and new culture, then it’s on to boarding school in Addis Abba where constant political confusion mixes with typical school day friendships and conflicts.

This book exposes you to one woman’s view of her unique upbringing and how it leads her through her university education back in the US and ultimately to her own marriage and family that bring her back to her beloved Ethiopia. But even then, she must face the continued changes that force her leave Ethiopia and take on bigger challenges in South Sudan...stay tuned for a much anticipated sequel.

[Carmen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Caroline Kurtz's A ROAD CALLED DOWN ON BOTH SIDES made me stop reading every so often to taste, smell, listen, touch, and see the Ethiopia where the Kurtz girls grew up and the Ethiopia I have wished to visit with them. The temptation to do so has ballooned after reading the book. Unfortunately, today I won't have the luxury of travelling with their loving parents. But I did so reading the book! Caroline Kurtz shows a tough mother who turns to cry after saying goodbye to her daughters, while the father doesn't hide the tears shed. I probably won't have the luxury of travelling for hours with goats, but Kurtz made me smell them. I won't have the luxury of hearing the dorm quarrels between the Kurtz sisters, but I experienced them and found them natural for their ages. I want to travel in a Jeep, but then I won't have Papa Kurtz if it breaks down. The Kurtz family didn't just go to Ethiopia to impose their religion, but to live among Ethiopians. I felt cultural shock both ways: getting used to the Ethiopia life, returning, and then having to get used to the American life.

A ROAD CALLED DOWN ON BOTH SIDES is a must read.

[Margaret E · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Caroline Kurtz's memoir of growing up in Ethiopia and then in America during the family's sabbaticals and in her college years. It felt like talking to a survivor of Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver! The children were raised so differently from their Ethiopian neighbors, learned to rely on only each other (only eight people spoke English in the compound), and survived home schooling to go on to boarding school. Caroline has returned to Ethiopia over and over again, frequently during a governmental turnover, including to have her first child. The metaphor of looking down from a narrow road into an abyss—terrifying as a child—suits the cultural changes she experienced in leaving one home for another. The descriptions are beautiful, the people memorable, the life extraordinary. Great book!

[Sheri S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was a very pleasantly written book with strong evidence of the author's love of Ethiopia shining brightly through each page. It also provides a unique perspective of what it means to be an American who grows up in and closely identifies with another country. The challenge of transitioning from one country to another, especially during adolescence, can be overwhelming as the author records. I appreciated the opportunity to learn more about Ethiopia.

[Katinka Steyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book tells the story of Caroline, growing up in Ethiopia as the child of a missionary. Throughout the book she finds herself struggling with acceptance. It gives an interesting glimpse into a country I know very little of. It should be an interesting read for someone with a particular interest in the history of Ethiopia. In general I found it quite difficult to read as it appears somewhat segmented.

[Cindy DavisClark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Memoir of life growing up on a remote mission station in Ethiopia. The author returned to the USA with her family for part of high school. Then college. Marriage and a return to Ethiopia with her family. Interesting information about a country I had little knowledge about before reading this book. Also interesting following her faith journey. I read this as part of a reading program.

[Patricia M Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book had a very historical insight to the country of Ethiopia and an interesting look as life as a child of missionaries. Caroline's perspective as a child and observations as an adult. The book was informative.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't imagine the life of small children in mission countries with their parents. This beautifully written book tells the love that grows among people of the world over the love of Christ and the sharing of his word. It is never an easy life but one rich in blessings.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Got it to learn about Ethiopia. It's a memoir, and a rather sad one, first, but it also gives some glimpses of life through the eyes of a loving observer of the country.

[Leslie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting host of Ethiopia. Her own personal story needs
editing.

[Tiah]

Book Bite on behalf of the Sunday Times: https://bit.ly/3cKvF2T

~All the other kids my age in our mission had been sent off to boarding school in first grade. Parents had been assured that as they served God, God would heal any pain inflicted on their children. They didn't actually look at what it did. Peer pressure kept them strong.~

~I tested my conscience, like my tongue had tested the spot where a tooth had come out, where the flesh was surprisingly soft and a little raw, and tasted of blood. I found no guilt: I would even lie, not to be any more left out.~

~A woman reached out and fingered my hair...A man brushed the peach-fuzz on my arm.~

~[Doris Lessing] wrote that Africa is like a relapsing fever in the blood, one that has no cure, but flares up from time to time for the rest of a person's life.~

~In the US, I had looked like I should fit, but the fit rubbed. In Ethiopia, no one expected me to fit perfectly. I found, again, my cleft in the rock.~

~The exact contours of my dual loyalties burrow deeply, hidden even to me. No matter where I live, the other half of my heart will fill with longing.~

[Mona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just WOW

This put me right into the family. I can imagine feeling the way Caroline feels. While I don’t have enough background to understand all the political nuances of the times in this, I got enough to make me want to know more.