Long Journey Home

Long Journey Home, is an autobiography beginning in Poland in 1939. This is a little known story of what happened in Poland during Russian occupation as seen through the eyes of a young girl. On June 20, 1941, a ten year-old girl living a quiet country life is suddenly awakened by a knock on the door in the middle of the night. Two Russian soldiers pointing rifles at parents gave orders to be ready to leave at dawn. Their destination was Siberia. One day after their arrest, Germany declared war on Russia and re-conquering the eastern part of Poland, moved swiftly into Russian mainland. Stalin unable to contain them, sought help from Western Allies. An amnesty pact was signed at the Kremlin with General Sikorski for the Polish Government-in-Exile, granting freedom to all Polish prisoners and deportees. It also provided for formation of a Polish volunteer army on Russian soil to be trained and shipped to the Western Front. Anyone having a close relative in that army could leave Russia. The author and her family were the lucky ones. Freed from Russia in August 1942, going through the Caspian Sea to Persia (now Iran), India, Mexico and, ultimately after six years of wanders, landing in the U.S.