Why Birches Are White

By Elena S. Smith

Book Overview

Why Birches Are White reveals the power of a glance, a touch, and a kiss to change profoundly the orderly, predictable lives of an American man and a Russian woman. It is a love story written on two different canvasses: a realistic, insightful black and white portrayal of contemporary Russian life and a bright, fresh impressionist reaction to America's past and present. In the summer of 1987, average Americans and Russians walked from Leningrad to Moscow for Peace. This fictional romance based on a true story is about just one of the amazing consequences of the Walk. Two of the walkers' discovery that they were 'kindred spirits' proved the foundation for a friendship that endured in spite of cultural, political, and geographic differences. Their courageous willingness to eventually admit they loved each other is set against a backdrop of doubt, hardship, and sacrifice. Unexplainable forces and a host of personal Angles dramatically bring them together again and again.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1419627511
• ISBN13: 9781419627514
• Release Date: April 2006
• Publisher: Booksurge Publishing
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.76 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

5 stars in my book ;-)

I enjoyed reading the book. Usually you can tell a lot about the book from the first chapter. So I'll say a few words about that, and you can make up your mind about the rest. It contains all the key ingredients, blended into a potent elixir which evokes wonder and anticipation so important for a first chapter of a novel: There is a foreign, grandious, slightly mysterious location of St. Petersburg (then Leningrad), accentuated by descriptions of architecture and few additional intricate details. There are the contours of engaging characters, with enough detail to reassure the reader about their comprehensive development further down the road. And there is a snapshot of the societal landscape, characterized by the growing conflict between the budding desire for freedom and openness among the individual citizens and the deep-rooted rules and regulations dictated by the conventions of the still-strong, albeit slowly deteriorating, regime. Thus we have the place, the characters, and the context. What a fantastic way to invite the reader into the story. Overall, the book lives up to the bar raised high in the introduction. What happens to the characters? How does it end? I guess you'll have to find out ;-)

Why Birches Are White

Wonderful book that shows if one is a believer that love does conquer all. With a very interesting view of Russia before the wall came down, two people meet to find that despite all the reasons why logically they can never spend their lives together, their belief and their love makes amazing things happen. I loved the journey and the passion behind it and what it says about sticking with your dreams ... doors open where they were closed before.

This Beatiful Tale Based On a True Story

5 Stars Why Birches Are White is a smartly written book about two "enemies" who meet and fall in love. The story has as many unexpected twists and turns as a Sir Arthur Conan Doyle mystery. Framed against the backdrop of the Cold War, the lives of one American man and a Russian woman and their love, faith and destiny in true Pasternak tradition eclipses the madness of an era when the world stood on the brink of total destruction. The author creates for the reader a rich mosaic of images and emotions with the use of literary quotes, song lyrics, and historical and cultural facts about Russia. The reader is left wondering where fiction leaves off and fact begins in this beautiful tale based on a true story. This is a must read!

Leave it to the Universe to find your most loving relationship

I loved this book and couldn't put it down. Two wonderful, ordinary people living world apart but pursuing their burning desire to bring peace in this insane world, fall in love despite the many obstacles they encountered.Their unshaken faith and profound belief that the Universe knows they are meant to be together bring so many serendipitous events that led to the blossoming of a most romantic love story. Elena's life in Russia in the 80s revealed how oppressing the communism regime was, especially for women and one can associate with her courage to change such a state and find freedom.

Russian Romance

I loved this book! Two seemingly star-crossed lovers find themselves on opposite places of the planet. However, they are destined to be together and coincidence and serendipity agree. At times the novel reads like prose as the author describes falling in love and her Mother Russia. The author, a Russian professor of English, invites you inside beautiful and terrible Leningrad and describes life as a woman in 1980's Russia. This novel will make you want to vist Russia and believe in true love.