In its most recent publication An Ordinary Move, The Canadian Polish Research Institute presents a collection of eleven memoirs written by Polish immigrants who arrived in Canada between 1988 and 2012. All but one of the memoirs were originally written in Polish, but all have been translated making this bilingual collection accessible to English and Polish readers alike. The collection makes topics such as immigration, diaspora and belonging more approachable by presenting them through the lens of the daily lived experiences of immigrants themselves while at the same time providing readers a context for understanding the narratives.
The genre of the memoir is often thought of as documentary and factual. This collection, however, presents accounts that are equally as artistic as they are documentary. The individuality of the authors is represented by the diversity of literary forms that they employ to deliberate their experiences of immigration. The collection of memoirs includes a poem and diary in addition to the more classic narrative forms. The authors also employ diverse literary tools to enrich their stories. One memoir uses the metaphor of four matches to symbolize the strength that siblings possess when they stick together.
While the memoirs are quite diverse when looked at individually, they are simultaneously united by some common themes. When read as a whole, the collection presents a picture of the Polish diaspora in Canada. The rich picture presented by this collection, is complemented by a note from the editors as well as an introduction by Dr. Anna Reczynska, both of which provide a context for deeper understanding of the memoirs. The editors analyze trends across the memoirs while Dr. Reczynska provides some background information about the Polish diaspora and suggests that memoirs can be a rich source of information for researchers studying this group.
As the editors explain in their note, two of the memoirs featured in the collection fall outside of the date range 1988-2012. The inclusion of these memoirs, written by a married couple who were exiled from Poland and came to Canada in 1985, presents an interesting juxtaposition to the stories of immigrants who came to Canada after Poland’s transition for non-political reasons. These immigrants describe their motivations and often they are rooted in economic reasons as well as attempts to reunite families. The juxtaposition between the pre- and post-transition immigrations, shows how Polish immigration to Canada has changed after the fall of communism in Poland.
An Ordinary Move, the seventh volume of memoirs that has been published by The Canadian Polish Research Institute, reads like an orchestra of immigrant voices. Each voice tells a different story but they come together to present a portrait of the most recent immigrants to Canada. Brimming with emotions such as fear, hope, longing and joy, the collection draws its reader into the individual lives of the authors while at the same time sharing insights about Canada’s Polish diaspora as a whole.
You can order “An Ordinary Move: Memoirs of Polish Immigrants to Canada 1988-2012”; edited by Jacek Kozak, Joanna Lustanski on the Canadian Polish Research Institute‘s website.
Reviewed by: Camilla Szczesniak /The Canadian Polish Research Institute