Žij tam, kde jsou písně - Jak ruská Romka dobyla Ameriku – Marafiotiová Oksana (2019)

Fifteen-year-old Oksana appears to be an ordinary American teenager at first glance, but in reality, she is torn between two ancient cultures, Romani and Armenian, framed by her childhood in the Soviet Union. Each member of her unusual family – a grandfather who is a theater impresario, a grandmother who is a witch, a father who loves the occult, and a bohemian mother – has left an indelible mark on her and raised an unanswered question within her: Who am I, really? Emigration to the United States also brought a series of unpleasant surprises. America doesn’t always look like it does in MTV videos, and family doesn’t always stick together unconditionally. Each person copes with the role of an immigrant in their own way; some with an extra shot of alcohol, others by opening a fortune-telling salon, but Oksana is learning to appreciate the rich tapestry of her origins and to find peace within herself rather than in the recognition of others. The life story of Oksana Marafioti (1974) has the traits of a madcap comedy, yet it is also permeated with a light sadness over the loss of innocence and the original way of life. In her debut, the author breaks down prejudices about the Romani and reveals a piece of an unknown world, while appealing to what is universally human in us.