READ THIS: Toward a Better Life By Mover and Shaker Peter Morton Coan
Peter Coan is a Mover and Shaker:
We previously recommended by Peter:
And today we are pleased to recommend Toward a Better Life, the chronicle of many stories of immigration decade by decade that will capture your heart. Each person interviewed presents a tale of both challenges and victories that you will not only be touched by, but will also learn from. We particularly liked how decade by decade certain household names were highlighted as immigrants to America, including one of our favorites, Angela Lansbury whom we met at Landmarks recently.
photo by Annie Watt
On Pearl Harbor day we wanted to remember this important day in history with something else American that is positive: Toward a Better Life.
Freedom is always something each of us should be thankful for every day. Freedom is not free...and it should be appreciated.
If you think you are having a rough day at the office, listen to some of these stories. Not taking a bath for 23 days (p. 83) & black from coal dust on the ship over...passing medical exams...
You'll hear from a diverse crowd including on of the Von Trapp Family Singers; we know you want to hear what she said the differences are between real life and The Sound of Music! We loved the pride that is displayed on page 147 in learning English: sadly we see so little of this today. Becoming American absolutely includes a mastery of the English language and is part of respecting America and your fellow citizens.
We totally agree on page 218 when Andre Soltner talks about running a restaurant and how you must always be there, and take everything seriously. No cutting corners! And we loved hearing the story of Ariane Daguin, whom we met through working with the French Heritage Society:
photo by Annie Watt
This is a must-read for any person who is enthused about American history. As you know, Peachy as a B.A. in it from Boston College...immigration quota acts in the 1920's altered the course of immigration, and of course as we are usually in Manhattan, how can you not think of Ellis Island which is mentioned again and again and is where we actually met Peter Coan, ages agao now! This makes a fabulous Christmas present for every American in your life! This book is pure inspiration, and we highly recommend it.
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“A wonderful book that takes you up close and into the lives of America's immigrants, revealing their hopes and dreams, sorrows and fears.”
--Lee Iacocca, Chairman, The Iacocca Foundation, Former CEO and Chairman of
Chrysler Corporation, and Founding Chairman of The Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation
“While the ethnic details and backgrounds of the people profiled in this book may be different, they all tell the same story. These stories, including my own, are one of transformation, rebirth, and rediscovery… My family and I had our American Dream fulfilled after landing on Ellis Island over 80 years ago. The heartening stories in this book echo the words of President Kennedy; the dream still lives and the hope never dies.” --Isabel Belarsky, original Ellis Island immigrant, 1930
Toward a Better Life
America’s New Immigrants in Their Own Words—
From Ellis Island to the Present
Peter Morton Coan
Foreword by Barry Moreno
Chief Historian and Librarian for Ellis Island and the new National Museum of Immigration
Preface by Stephen A. Briganti
President and Chief Executive Officer, Statue of Liberty–Ellis Island Foundation, Inc.
Immigrants comprise nearly a quarter of the US population, a larger proportion than at any time since World War II. Of those, more than 10 percent are here illegally, and many more try to enter the country and fail. What motivates so many people to take great risks to come to our shores?
In this fascinating and richly illustrated oral history, author Peter Morton Coan has compiled the true stories of immigrants told in their own words. Toward a Better Life spans 120 years of the American immigrant experience in candid tales told straight from the heart. They range from interviews with relatives of Annie Moore (Ellis Island’s first immigrant) and the Von Trapp family (made famous by The Sound of Music) to the inspiring stories of “The Dog Whisperer” Cesar Millan, master chef Jacques Pepin, and musicians Emilio and Gloria Estefan, as well as the dramatic tale of Carlos Escobar’s harrowing trip north from Mexico in 1996 to create a better life for his family. Whether it’s ordinary people doing extraordinary things or celebrities who chose America as their new home, Toward a Better Life offers a balanced, poignant, and often moving portrait of America’s immigrants over more than a century.
Coan has organized the book by decades so that readers can easily find the time period most relevant to their experience or that of family members. The first part covers the Ellis Island era, the second part America’s new immigrants—from the closing of Ellis Island in 1955 to the present. Also included is a comprehensive appendix of statistics showing immigration by country and decade from 1890 to the present, a complete list of famous immigrants, and much more.This rewarding, engrossing volume documents the diverse mosaic of America in the words of the people from many lands, who for more than a century have made our country what it is today. It distills the larger, hot-topic issue of national immigration down to the personal level of the lives of those who actually lived it.
Peter Morton Coan (New York, NY) is the award-winning author of Ellis Island Interviews: In Their Own Words and the critically acclaimed biography Taxi: The Harry Chapin Story. His work has appeared in Time, the New York Times, Newsday, Travel & Leisure, World Tennis, and many other publications. He is the creator and principal owner of Coanbooks.com.
390 pages (photos) • ISBN 978-1-61614-394-7 • Hardcover: $26 • Publication: August 2011
Ebook • $12.99 • ISBN 978-1-61614-395-4
