Book Reviews

Behind God's Back

Behind God's Back is the saga of a Serbian female physician's journey through the trials and travesties of World War I, World War II and the communist era. The story fills in historic gaps of these tumultuous events from a unique Balkan point of view; it highlights how small nations struggle to survive when caught in the direct pathway of major nations' ambitions. A powerful and poignant love story that faces many challenges intertwines throughout the saga. Desa Jovanovic witnesses and experiences such misery in World War I that she decides to become a medical doctor. After the war, she wins a scholarship from Serbia's ally, France, to study medicine in Montpellier, France. Determined to take advantage of her scholarship, Desa keeps her nose to the grindstone regardless of the convivial atmosphere of Montpellier in the aftermath of the war. Despite her determined stance, she is intrigued with a tall, handsome Serbian law student, Danilo Marić, whom she must fight to win from a beautiful French student. After many setbacks, Desa captures the heart and love of Danilo and they're married in an early morning service in Belgrade.

Families and Faith: How Religion is Passed Down Across Generations

Families and Faith: How Religion is Passed Down Across Generations is written by Vern Bengston, scholar of religion at the University of Southern California. The book examines continuity (or discontinuity) in "transmissions" of religious traditions and values from generation to generation within various American faith communities. What makes this book truly unique is that Vern Bengston and his colleagues followed the lives of about 350 extended families (3,500 individuals) for the period of nearly 40 years. This is largest ever study of religion and family across generations and many findings are quite surprising and challenge commonly accepted stereotypes.

The book is available on Amazon both as hardcopy and electronic book.

Serbs in The United States and Canada - A Comprehensive Bibliography

Serbs in The United States and Canada
A Comprehensive Bibliography

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The Prince of Fire: An Anthology of Contemporary Serbian Short Stories

Pitt Series in Russian and East European Studies

Editors Gorup and Obradovic have collected stories from thirty-five outstanding writers in this first English anthology of Serbian fiction in thirty years. The anthology, representing a great variety of literary styles and themes, includes works by established writers with international reputations, as well as promising new writers spanning the generation born between 1930 and 1960. These stories may lead to a greater understanding of the current events in the former Yugoslavia.