A New England Tale
$24.95
Paperback, 6″ x 9″
383 pages
ISBN 978-1-63381-408-0
$38.95
Hardcover, 6″ x 9″
383 pages
ISBN 978-1-63381-409-7
by Birgitta Ingemanson
Roxana “Roxy” Eleanor Lord Pray (1868–1954) grew up in Berwick, Maine, but lived longer than anywhere else in Vladivostok, Russia. In letters home, she regularly described memories from her childhood and youth, connecting that strong background with her home in Vladivostok. Loving both New England and this new life, she remained always a proud Down East Yankee.
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“The Dear Folks at Home is a fascinating account of the life of Eleanor L. Pray, who at age 25 left Maine to spend 36 years in Vladivostok, the Pacific port at the furthest reaches of the Russian Empire. Drawing upon Mrs. Pray’s voluminous correspondence with her relatives in New England and other archival sources, Professor Ingemanson paints a vivid picture of how Eleanor and her husband interacted with local Russians, and how she experienced such momentous events as the Russo-Japanese War, World War I, the October Revolution, and the imposition of Soviet rule in the 1920s. In addition to being a valuable resource for historians of Russia and U.S.–Russia relations, The Dear Folks at Home is a warm and moving story—a testament to Eleanor Pray’s enduring attachment to two places, two cultures, and two peoples: those of her native New England and of the Russian Far East. This is a gem that will appeal to scholars and general readers alike.”
—John Van Oudenaren, Global Fellow, Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies and former chief, European Division, the Library of Congress
“The central theme in The Dear Folks at Home: A New England Tale is the complex experience of Eleanor Pray and her husband to live in a place (in Russia) very different from home (in New England), to adapt to this new life, and to keep both homes vibrant and fresh in their hearts. She steps into this challenge by building not only a bridge of letters, memories, and extraordinary observations of the two places, but also a spiritual bridge of poems and music that create a strong bond between her New England childhood and youth and her Russian middle age.”
—Tamara G. Bogolepova, Doctor, Honorary Professor, Far Eastern Federal University, Vladivostok
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Birgitta Ingemanson was born and grew up in Stockholm, Sweden, and has lived and worked there and in the United States, France, and Russia. She has a fil.kand. in history and Russian from the University of Stockholm and an MA and PhD in Russian literature from Princeton. At Washington State University she taught Russian Studies, including literature and film.