The Rromani Connection website
Rromani Books
'Dukh - Pain' is Hedina Sijercic's collection of richly evocative poems, weaving together the author's fleeting joys and enduring tragedies with traditional Romani folklore. Hedina's poetry is enlightening in its candidness, which shatters the fanciful myth of the mysterious and ever-carefree Roma, replacing it with lyric images of a people living, loving, and dying, not immune to the caprice of the world that surrounds them. It is through such tragedies that the lingering message of these poems has become simply dukh, pain.
Magoria Books
http://www.magoriabooks.com/books/dukh_pain/
Hussein, a Roma boy, experiences the injustice of religious prejudice when his mosque is shut down and he is forced to give up his own name and take on the Christian name of Harry.
Boyds Mills Press
http://www.boydsmillspress.com
Romani authors, Hristo Kyuchukov and Ian Hancock, explain the history of a persecuted people and why Gypsy is a scornful name
http://www.boydsmillspress.com
In this book, written in the traditional Gypsy style of family biography, Yvonne Slee gives us a collection of stories about her ancestors who lived in Germany in the twentieth century. She begins with her great grandfather, called August, "torn away" from his Gypsy relations to be adopted into an uncaring family with a viscious stepfather. Running away at 15, August finds employment and friendship amongst Gypsies who teach him how to survive, and eventually marries a German woman and raises a family, including Elsa,Yvonne's grandmother. They adopt a disabled Gypsy boy called Freddy. As a half-Gypsy, with dark skin and long black hair, Elsa experiences racism at school, where her plait is cut off during a lesson by a spiteful classmate. She finds solace playing with friends in a nearby Gypsy encampment. Conditions in Germany during First World War force Elsa's mother to go to the woods to pick berries and nuts, while August hunts for animals. In the 1930's, Elsa notices ethnic families being taken from their homes to be "rehoused." Each time a truck appears in the street, her mother grabs Freddy and hides at the home of a friend, while August disappears till the danger passes. Eventually, Freddy is snatched away by the authorities and put in a home for the handicapped. The family eventually discover the dreadful truth - he has been sent to a concentration camp and gassed. Elsa marries an anti-Nazi called Willy, who is called up during the Second World War. After he is killed at the front, Elsa is left to bring up their young children alone. Almost arrested for being non-Aryan, she is rescued by an acquaintance, and lives out the rest of the war living on food she gathers from the forest. Surviving bombs, semi-starvation, and the destruction of her home, Elsa lives to the age of 80. Despite its sad theme, the book has many lively incidents. Elsa is almost gored by a bull, narrowly escapes drowning, and uncovers a butcher's pet-stealing scam. Yvonne Slee writes with compassion about a family surviving the Holocaust and war.
Janna Eliot. London, UK
Following 18 carefully structured lessons, this Romani language primer explores the vocabulary and grammar of the Kalderash Roma in Europe, the United States, Canada, and Latin America. Designed for beginner students, this course reference begins with the basic verbs and nouns and builds through to the subtler grammatical necessities of reading and speaking the language. Quotations from native speakers, poems, songs, proverbs, and folktales add to the cultural and historical understanding of the language.
http://perseus.herts.ac.uk/uhinfo/university-of-hertfordshire-press
This highly readable introduction to Roma life, written by a Rom, considers culture, language, politics, society, health, and food to provide an insightful portrait of this fascinating minority. In surveying the Gypsies, their origins and history and their exclusion from society, Ian Hancock offers candid advice on rejecting prejudices and stereotypes and getting to know the Roma as individuals. There is also a section of short biographies of Roma from many different walks of life.
http://perseus.herts.ac.uk/uhinfo/university-of-hertfordshire-press
In December 2007, the department of Rromani philology of Paris University (at Inalco) and Rromani baxt, a branch of the IRU, reissued under the title „Un dictionnaire rromani oublié” (A Forgotten Rromani Dictionary) Ferenc Sztojka’s Hungarian-Rromani Dictionary, first printed in Paks (Hungary, Tolna county) as early as 1890. Professor Marcel Courthiade, head of the above mentioned department, carried out this publication in cooperation with Kányádi András, professor in the department of Hungarian philology at the same university. The basic purpose of this book of XLII+200 pages is to circulate and make known as widely as possible this pioneer’s work being the first ever compiled dictionary by a Rromani author.
With its 13,000 or so entries and 25 pages of illustrative texts at the end of the book, Sztojka’s dictionary is one of the most significant milestones in early Rromani lexicography.
This edition was prepared on the basis of one of the scarce still existing copies of this book, belonging to Frédéric Max, a French diplomat and bibliophile, famous also for his long-lasting interest in Rromani matter (he was for example the first person about the genocide of the Rroms in Nazi times).
The extensive introduction starts with a chapter devoted to the friendship between the author Ferenc Sztojka and Archduke Joseph Ludwig Karl von Habsburg and their respective roles in early Hungarian and European Rromology. The second chapter deals with the lexicon itself and especially to some cases of Hungarian loan-translations in Sztojka’s Rromani, brining an attempt of typologization of compound words in his vocabulary, which addresses not only realia of everyday Hungarian villages but also a more sophisticated vocabulary, including various abstract terms as well as names of animals and plants. Several pages are devoted to derivation (with a special attention to causatives and nomina agentis). Morphology, semantics and onomastics as appearing in the dictionary are also treated.
Two pages discuss pronunciation and spelling, with the explanation of the spelling used in the present reissue, where phonemes originally confused under a common letter in the 19th century issue are distinguished here (notably Hungarian vowels á and e which are often used instead of each other, due to their confusion in dialectal Hungarian). Interestingly enough Sztojka distinguishes sharply between simple and strong r’s, in conformity with today’s still prevailing use in Hungary and abroad. He uses consistently r and rr to render in written these phonemes, except at the beginning of words, due to the strange aspect words beginning with rr- would have presented to 19th century Austrian reader’s eyes. The conclusion highlights Szojka’s determination to endow his mother tongue (a Rromani variety of mutational E-superdialect, close to Machari, Drizari and Lovari) with complex concepts and raise it to a level standing comparison with languages like Croatian or Slovakian in his time. The very fact that the dictionary has Hungarian as source language and gives attempts of Rromani equivalents evidences this approach, which is in many cases more daring than most present-day dictionaries. Several letters exchanged between Sztojka and Archduke Joseph, initially published in Rézmuves’ “Rromani letters” (Budapest, Cigány Ház 2003), are reproduced in Rromani original and French translation, as well as Sztojka’s introduction to his dictionary (Hungarian original and French translation). Interesting remarks on the Hungarian part of the dictionary by Professor Kányádi conclude the introduction.
The whole dictionary has been adapted to present day spelling, meaning for example that distinction in Hungarian between ü and u or ö and o (missing in the original) has been restored, while Rromani is given in common spelling, allowing readers from whatever dialectal background to use the book. The only interventions by editors have been restoring correct separation between words and correcting gender agreements, which were in very many cases erroneous.
Last but not least, the book presents some 25 pages of Rromani texts, mainly of religious character (prayers, songs, prose and verses), translated into Rromani, and a series of poems authored by Sztojka himself, who results therefore to be the first Rromani poet in the history of our literature. True enough, his inspiration is typically 19th century village style, consonant with surrounding European literatures of that time and his poems look quite old-fashioned from a modern perspective. In spite of this they present an unquestionable historical value.
Due to the book’s historical and linguistic value (especially in the field of language contacts from a semantic perspective), it would be highly advisable to produce and disseminate a Hungarian version of this early monument in Rromani lexicography, written by a lexicon lover, being himself a member of this people.
Contact Marcel Courthiade at usna2emc@gmail.com for more information.
On July 14, 1933, Hitler's cabinet passed the Lebensunwertesleben law, a law which called for the annihilation of certain people who led "lives not worthy of life." The law was aimed specifically against Gypsies, and Afro-Germans. The black Germans were primarily children born from sexual union between German women and French Senegalese troops used during the First World War to patrol the Ruhr Valley, as well as people from German ex-colonies in Africa.
Although much is known about The Third Reich's genocide against the Jews, there is not as much literature about the five million Gypsies and black Germans who also lost their lives to further Adolf Hitler's racist aims. On December 8th, 1938, SS chief Heinrich Himmler called for the 'Final 'Solution of the Gypsy Question,' and on December 16th, 1942, began deporting all Gypsies remaining in German-held Europe to Auschwitz.
The Nuremberg Law for the Protection of Blood and Honour was instituted on 15 September 1935, and the Gypsy Law (Reichzigeunergesetz) which was created to track the Romani (Gypsy) population, their sterilization, their movement and means of livelihood, and the expulsion of all foreign-born, stateless Gypsies." (State Secretary of the Interior Hans Pfundtner, March 4th, 1936.) Statements such as that made by in 1939 by Dr. Johannes Behrendt, Office of Racial Hygiene Policy Statement, ''All Gypsies should be treated as hereditarily sick; the only solution is elimination. The aim should, therefore, be the elimination without hesitation of this characteristically defective element in the population." Such historical facts are so odious and unbelievable that they seem too much for the mind to handle...and can only be encountered through the memoirs of survivors.
Cora Schwartz's memoir Gypsy Tears: Loving a holocaust survivor is both autobiography and biography and a tribute to those forgotten Gypsies killed during the days of the Third Reich.
It begins as a love story. When newly-divorced Cora from the Bronx first meets Rudy from Ukraine in the Catskills, the reader thinks he is a bit odd. But as quickly as he meets her he begins telling her about a Gypsy girl, Romania, and the Nazi camp where they were imprisoned.
Like all Holocaust sufferers, Rudy is overwhelmed with grief, survivor's guilt and anger. He is also, like many wounded people, not an easy person to deal with. He drinks too much, has nightmares, and belittles her own pain. But Cora has a kind heart and falls in love with him. Their relationship is an unplanned journey that helps her to understand her own life and brings her to a new understanding of the wide-range of Hitler's plans to "purify Germany" and creates a new vocation in her life: bringing humanitarian aid to the last holocaust survivors in Ukraine. Her other book, a photographic book of Holocaust Survivors, and entitled, The Forgotten Few shows how Rudy's life affected and brought meaning to hers.
This is a passionate love story, layered with history, which shows that the effect of Hitler's intense maniacal obsession, still exists. It also shows that Hitler's only logic was hatred. Many people think the Holocaust against the Jews was a symbol of Hitler's anti-Semitism. But the Gypsies were not primarily Jewish. In addition, Hitler maintained good relations with many Arabs, (who are Semites)and the Grand Mufti, who was the most influential leader of Palestine during the Second World War, was good friends with Hitler who had befriended followers of Islam in Eastern Europe. Although Hitler's book Mein Kampf is considered required reading in many Arab universities, the holocaust was waged against other groups also...not only Jews. In the story, Cora's realization of this truth matches our own realization: Many holocaust sufferers are forgotten and their stories untold.
In 1979, Time Magazine reported, "Although West Germany paid nearly $715 million to Israel and various Jewish organizations, [as of 1979] Gypsies as a group have received nothing." In 1984, Simon Weisenthal stated, "The Gypsies had been murdered in a proportion similar to the Jews: about 80% of them in the area of the countries which were occupied by the Nazis."
A book, and money cannot bring back a lost people but at least their stories are being told.
A beautifully illustrated Rromani language book written by Marcel Courthiade
Prof. Marcel Courthiade, head of the department of Rromani philology at the Paris University.
First Edition
From Palgrave Macmillan http://www.palgrave-usa.com
Pub date: Apr 2008
272 pages
This book traces representations of “Gypsies” that have become prevalent in the European imagination and culture and influenced the perceptions of Roma in Eastern and Western European societies.
Valentina Glajar is Associate Professor of German at Texas State University, San Marcos. Domnica Radulescu is Professor of French and Italian and Chair of the Women’s Studies Program at Washington and Lee University.
Table of contents
Roma in Europe: Gypsy Myth and Romani Reality--New Evidence for Romani History--Ronald Lee * Introduction--Valentina Glajar * Bohemian Philosophers: Nature, Nationalism and “Gypsies” in Nineteenth-Century European Literature--Philip Landon * The Story of Love, Human Conditions, and the Gypsy Lifestyle in Józef Ignacy Kraszewski’s Chata za Wsia [The Cottage beyond the Village]--Agnieszka Nance * Vsevolod Garshin's “The Bears”: Gypsies and Russian Imperial Boundaries--Marilyn Smith * “Gypsies” and Property in British Literature: Orlando and Wuthering Heights--Abby Bardi * Guilt, Trauma, and Revenge: The Romani Holocaust in Stefan Kanfer’s The Eighth Sin--Valentina Glajar * Unveiling the Origin of the Romani Holocaust: The Anarchist Tradition in Winter Time by Walter Winter--Ferdâ Asya * The Deportation to Transdniester and the Exoticization of the Roma in Zaharia Stancu’s Novel The Gypsy Tribe--Lucia Cherciu * The ‘Gypsy’ Stereotype and the Sexualization of Romani Women--Ian Hancock * Performing the Female Gypsy – Commedia dell’arte’s “Tricks” for Finding Freedom--Domnica Radulescu * Theater of the Underworld: Spectacle and Subculture in Hugo’s Notre-Dame de Paris--Aimee Kilbaine * Welcome Pictures, Unwanted Bodies: Gypsy Representations in New Europe’s Cinema--Dina Iordanova
Settela's Last Road by Janna Eliot
Available at Trafford Publishing:
www.trafford.com/07-2561
(This novel is an imaginative interpretation based on historical characters and events. Inspired by the haunting photograph taken by Rudolf Breslauer in 1944, it uses details from SETTELA, a factual account by journalist Aad Wagenaar.)
Settela's Last Road has been written in a compelling, heartfelt and realistic way by Janna Eliot. It is a story of how a nine year old Sinti girl, Settela and her loving Sinti family were decimated by the world's most horrifying event, the Holocaust. Sweet Settela never gives up hope and retains a defiant spirit throughout the book. The book gives a very good insight into what happened to Romanies in the concentration camps and how they were lied to by the German authorities and moved on to selected camps and marked for extermination. It tells how their animals and caravans were taken away, Settela getting separated from her father and uncles and always hoping that when the war is over they could all live life normally and be together again. Settela's dreams, hopes and plans for the future are with her until the horrific end. The story left me feeling deeply touched and lamenting the Romani victims of the Samudaripen (Holocaust). I also felt very saddened and somehow close to Settela. Settela's Last Road brings the young girl's story vividly to life.
Yvonne Slee
Preface
The present linguistic description has been compiled from my notes on Vlax Romani grammar prepared for students who are majoring mainly in Asian Studies, Media, Anthropology, Folklore or Journalism, enrolled in the Romani Language and Culture seminar which has been offered each semester at The University of Texas at Austin since 1978. The variety described here incorporates features from a number of kinds of Vlax and, because of that, is not quite like any single spoken dialect.
As it is spoken in the United States and Canada, Vlax adopts items from English very freely, as well as borrowing constructions and translating idioms from that language; this kind of linguistic interference is a natural characteristic of Romani and other diaspora languages, but in preparing this manual reference to the English element has been intentionally minimized, especially where an original (i.e. pre-North American) form already exists.
Although this description was originally prepared for students who, in the main, have had a minimum of linguistic training, and who have little or no intention of making use of it beyond the requirements of the course, in its present expanded form its wider purpose is to provide the basis for a Vlax dialect which will be maximally functional in international communication.
Ian Hancock
A Handbook of Vlax Romani by Professor Ian Hancock (1995)
Slavica Publishers, Inc.
PO Box 14388
Columbus, Ohio 43214
USA
Valdemar Kalinin was born in Vitebsk, Belarus. He worked for many years as a teacher. His first poem came out in 1957. In 1995 the U. K. Department of Education invited him to come to work in London, where is still living with his daughter Cristina and working in London schools.
V. Kalinin has written more than 36 books, works and articles about Roma. In 2001 he completed the translation of the whole Bible in the Romany language (Baltic Romanes).
V. Kalinin is a laureat of the International Prize Hiroshima Foundation - For peace and cultural development, 2001, Sweden.
In 2003 V. Kalinin received the Romani Literary Award from `Open Society Institute' in Budapest for his translation of Psalms from Hebrew into Baltic Romanes.
This book is a collection of his poems for your judgement and contemplation.
Romani Dreams by Valdemar Kalinin (2005)
A collection of poems translated into four languages.
Publishing House
Stepping Stones School
London
Spokes: Stories from the Romany World by Janna Eliot
Available from Inpressbooks: http://www.inpressbooks.co.uk/spokes_stories_from_the_romany_world_eliot_janna_i019618.aspx
"I was a doctor. I was a poet. I recited my poems at festivals in towns and villages in my country. Some of my poems are in books. I wrote about freedom and hope, about equality for my people. This is my story. They came for us. "Burn the filthy Gypsies!" they screamed. They dragged my husband from bed. They broke his arms and legs. They torched the house. "Run, Roma scum, run!" I took my baby and followed my star. That's why I'm here. That's why I sit behind the border of my counter, safe, invisible."
Spokes is made up of stories from across the world featuring British Gypsies; East European Roma; and people whose Romani background has remained under wraps in the face of a hostile world.
There's an old violinist, a middle-aged mechanic, a young radio presenter, a schoolboy, a retired banker, a tea-lady, and a teacher.
Janna Eliot - under the pen name of Rukshana Smith - is the author of several previous young adult novels including Sumitra’s Story, Salt on the Snow and Rainbows of the Gutter.
She was born in England of Russian, Armenian, and Roma heritage. Her novels tend to deal with displacement and the search for cultural identity. She is a member of the Gypsy Council, the Roma Support Group and plays guitar with the London Gypsy Orchestra.
A beautifully illustrated Romani folktale about how God made the Roma and the other peoples of the earth, from Magoria Books' Romani Folktales collection. Hedina Sijercic, internationally published Romani Poet and Author, brings us the stories from her childhood with the vivid watercolour painted illustrations of Doris Greven. This special bilingual edition contains both the English version and the Romani original of the story.
"How God made the Roma" by Hedina Sijercic
"An Unusual Family" by Hedina Sijercic
Another beautifully illustrated Romani folktale by Hedina Sijercic about the troublesome children of Mother Earth and Father Sky, from Magoria Books' Romani Folktales collection illustrated by Doris Greven. This special bilingual edition contains both the English version and the Romani original of the story.
The Living Fire by Ronald Lee
Available from Magoria Books
http://www.magoriabooks.com/books/livingfire
Ronald Lee's autobiographical novel, formerly published as "Goddam Gypsy", is an intense, fast moving, and brutally honest affair. Yanko—a Canadian Rom who 'took the non-Romani way but didn't go far'—seeks his fortunes both among and apart from the Roma, never quite finding his place.
His story exposes the out of sight, out of mind world of Canada's Roma in 1970's Montréal: Parties, rackets, bar brawls, weddings, desperate poverty, and intermittent police raids fuel in Yanko the passion, creativity, and rebellious defiance that is The Living Fire.
Review by Janna Eliot
Ronald Lee, the hero of this autobiographical novel, seeks to express his Romani identity in the racist, sexist Canada of the 1960s. Better known as compiler of a Romani dictionary and author of a Romani language text book, the author exposes the underworld of scams, deals, and prostitution. Episodes feature the tension between Canadian Indians, French and English Canadians, and the divisions between Roma from America, Canada and Eastern Europe.
After working in tinplating and making model ships, Ronald ends up as curator of the stuffed animal section of Expo 67 in Montreal. The corpses of the caribou displayed in glass display cabinets become a metaphor for a decaying Canada.
The most ironic comments about Indian reservations and the cultural destruction of the old way of life belong to Ronald's Indian wife, Marie. To preserve his sanity and freedom, Ronald decides to take his family to seek a better life in England.
Originally published as GODDAM GYPSY in 1970, E ZHIVINDI YAG is an interesting, informative read. A followup volume bringing readers up to date would be welcome.
Rromane Paramicha by Hedina Sijercic
Available from Magoria Books
http://www.magoriabooks.com/books/romfolk
Rromane Paramicha is a unique collection of folktales and legends that bring alive the rich cultural and religious traditions of the Roma. Hedina Tahirovic Sijercic, internationally published Romani poet and author, offers us the stories from her childhood with the authenticity of a direct inheritor of oral tradition. This special bilingual edition contains both faithful English translations, as well as the Gurbeti Romani originals of each story, with a selection of Doris Greven's beautiful watercolour illustrations.
Romani Prince Penga by Hedina Sijercic
Available from Magoria Books
http://www.magoriabooks.com/books/romfolk3
A beautifully illustrated Romani folktale about the evil deeds of the Romani Prince Penga and his adoptive brother Beng, from Magoria Books' Romani Folktales collection. Hedina Sijercic, internationally published Romani Poet and Author, brings us the stories from her childhood with the vivid watercolour painted illustrations of Doris Greven. This special bilingual edition contains both the English version and the Romani original of the story.
If you are a first time cook or someone whose cooking style is defined by measurements and precise ingredient lists, this is not a book for you. Gypsy cooking is about using what is available, and most importantly it is about using your senses to create a dish that is uniquely your own. It is about turning the kitchen into the heart of your household, the safe place for all friends and family to congregate as equals. A neutral place…a place traditions are built.
What you will find in this book, is a combination of our own personal collection of our favorite family recipes as well as those we have collected from our friends around the world and have made our own. It is a culmination of the history of the Gypsies, our family, memories and stories of travels. It is also a book of friendships and generosity from the people who have been generous in sharing their lives and their table with us.
Cooking with Gypsies by Sita and Dani Bamberger-Stolfi
Like Water/Sar o paj edited by Hedina Tahirovic Sijercic.
For information on how to obtain a copy go to www.indianwriters.org
The International Writers Association published and promoted the new book, Like Water/Sar o paj edited by Hedina Tahirovic Sijercic.
This is a first all women anthology - Through poetry, eight women write about life and their views of the Rromani situation.
Beside Hedina Tahirovic Sijercic- Bosnia and Herzegovina, co-authors are: Yvonne Slee - Australia, Rasa Lee Sutar - USA, Lynn Hutchinson, Julia Lovell, Sarah Barbieux, Thaïs Barbieux and Gina Csanyi - Canada.
Some of the translation into Rromani language was done by : Ronald Lee - Canada and Janardhan Pathania - India.
Cover illustration: Lynn Hutchinson - Canada
Back cover poem: Mario Ines Torres - Mexico
People of the Light: A Lightworkers Path to Self-realization by Anne Caroline Akers
Australian Romani author, Anne Acker's book, is a teaching manual for life, with basic techniques on meditation, affirmations, rituals, and other practices that are easy to follow. The spiritual purpose of “People of the Light” is to get us thinking in a new way. Anne states, “We are powerful beings who have incarnated to grow towards enlightenment”.
LIKE WATER/SAR O PAJ - a bilingual English/Romani anthology of poems by Romani women.
Edited by Hedina Tahiroviae Sijereiae, published 2009 by Kafla InterContinental, www.indianwriters.org <http://www.indianwriters.org>
"So often we women are excluded from our Romani communities, and under our male leaders it is not easy to speak our minds, express our ideas and make art." This feeling is what inspired Hedina Tahiroviae Sijereiae to compile the first volume of poems by Romani women. The title of the anthology is taken from a poem by Papusza, one of the most lyrical and emotive Romani writers.
The eight poets come from different backgrounds and countries but most are now resident in Canada or Australia. Their poems fall into four main categories, autobiography, lament, anecdote, and praise for nature.
The collection begins with work from the well known Hedina Tahiroviae Sijereiae. Originally from Sarajevo, in CV1 Hedina provides a poetic history of her life, typical of the experiences of so many Roma. Other poems, sometimes tender, sometimes savage, show the difficulties of a people often insulted, hungry, and without documents. As she cries out in CV2, Naj amen papiri! Kai bizo papiri? We have no papers! Where can we go without papers?
Sarah Barbieux, originally from Paris, writes of the pain of hiding her Gypsy identity as a child, and calls out to be taught the songs of her parents. Julia Lovell, born in Scotland, touches on sterilization and the extermination of the Gypsies under the Third Reich. Gina Csanyi-Robah, born in Toronto, gives a moving narrative about her dying Grandmother in Dza e Devalesa meri phuri Dai/Goodbye NagyMama. Yvonne Slee, born in Germany, calls for other Roma women to stand here by my side and strive to keep the Roma culture alive. The poems of Canadian Thais Barbieux dance across the page with their mythical dragons, princesses and knights. Bavaria-born Rasa Lee Sutar writes of dignity in the face of persecution. Lynn Hutchinson, living in Toronto, offers five poems for her father. The amazing images of his good eye clenched/glass eye staring/ tears pouring from both eyes/the living and the dead, and the description of the puppets he made, swallowing their truths with his last breath, are disturbing and memorable.
Sometimes each poet soars to the level that Papusza reached so effortlessly. In her curse poem Phuv/Earth, Hedina Tahiroviae Sijereiae shows Romani poetry at its best, casting spells, redemptive, universal. Sarah Barbieux, in But Baxt Tuke/May you be lucky, says, Nashti davas tuke mai but/ferdi murro orimos, mo swinto orimos../I have been able to give you nothing more than my wish, my sacred wish... Gina Csanyi-Robah hears o Romano muzikako bashalipe/the Gypsy music forever playing... In Romane phenja/Roma sisters, Julia Lovell uses typical Gypsy nature images of sun and moon to great effect. Yvonne Slee in Cikni Tradicija/A little tradition, writes a beautiful poem about her Sinti gran teaching her about herbs and berries while sitting beneath an ancient old oak tree. Thais Barbieux in O Drom o kezhlano/The Silken Road describes how her heart dances away from the prison of numbers on a road of silk. Rasa Lee Sutar in Bistardino/Forgotten, contrasts butterflies with the black train of the Nazis, and Lynn Hutchinson's inspiring poems blend lyrical folk tradition with realism.
This valuable book reveals the thoughts and ideals of a few contemporary Roma women. I'd like to have seen the poems in their original languages, to experience the rhythm which is so often lost in translation. I'd also like to see a followup volume featuring poets from more varied lands.
An unusual enterprise and a fascinating read!
review by Janna Eliot
This is a passionate love story, layered with history, which shows that the effect of Hitler's intense maniacal obsession, still exists. It also shows that Hitler's only logic was hatred.
Reviewed by Carole McDonnell
Gypsy Tears: Loving a Holocaust Survivor
By Cora Schwartz
Hobblebush Books
ISBN 978-0-9760896-9-8, $21.95, Published 2007, 244 pages
Where's Spot? by Eric Hill
Published in Romani language by Rromani Baxt - C.E.E. for the Interface Collection. ISBN - 2-9507850-2-6
One of the popular 'Spot the dog" books presented in Romani with pop-up windows to keep the children amused.
Savina the Gypsy dancer by Ann Tompert
Published by Macmillan Publishing Company. ISBN 0-02-789205-0
Savina's magical dancing is the only reason her Gypsy tribe is welcome in the land of the harsh King Walid. But Savina may also be the cause of her people's ruin. So captivating is she that the king decides she is a threat to his power.
King Walid determines to make the Gypsies surrender Savina. He has their horses stolen, their tents ripped, their tools seized. Still the Gypsies remain loyal to Savina - and joyous. When the king learns this, he becomes enraged. "She must be destroyed," he says. "She and all her tribe will be destroyed."
What can the Gypsies do? Can Savina save them?
In her romantic tale about family and tribal devotion, Ann Tompert captures the spirit of the Gypsy people. Dennis Nolan depicts it dramatically in rich, classical paintings that are as entertaining as the story.
Bosansko-romski i romsko-bosanski rjecnik by Hedina Sijercic
For information on how to obtain a copy email hedina45@aol.com
A Bosnian-Romani and Romani-Bosnian dictionary by Hedina Sijeric has just been published and is now available for purchase.
