Travel writer Thomas Swick talks about history and self-discovery and signs copies of his memoir, "Falling into Place: A Story of Love, Poland, and the Making of a Travel Writer."
From the publisher:
Working as a feature writer in 1976, Thomas Swick falls in love with a visiting Polish student named Hania and soon moves with her to Warsaw. The next decade sees Thomas living in Poland, Greece, and Philadelphia. He declines an invitation to be a Polish informer, sees John Paul II embolden the masses on his first trip back to his homeland since becoming pope, witnesses the rise of Solidarity and the imposition of martial law in Poland, and walks with thousands of Poles on the pilgrimage to Częstochowa, an annual religious rite that blossoms into a nine-day protest march. In 1989, he watches Hania vote in her country’s first free elections since pre-war independence. One month later, he lands his dream job as a travel writer.
“Falling into Place” is the personal story of a young man’s discovery of the world and his development as a travel writer. It is also a love story, as he and Hania overcome cultural differences, communist bureaucracy, and unhealthy separations. Intertwined with both is the story of the revolution that altered history. With the world’s attention once again turned to Eastern Europe, and a Cold War reality, this memoir can help Americans better understand both.
About the author:
Formerly a feature writer for the Trenton Times, an editorial writer for the Providence Journal in Rhode Island, and the travel editor for the Sun-Sentinel, Thomas Swick is the author of “Unquiet Days: At Home in Poland, A Way to See the World: From Texas to Transylvania with a Maverick Traveler,” and “The Joys of Travel: And Stories That Illuminate Them.” His essays and stories have appeared in The Wilson Quarterly, Oxford American, American Scholar, Missouri Review, Los Angeles Review of Books, Smithsonian, National Geographic Traveler, Longreads, and Literary Hub. His memoir, “Falling into Place: A Story of Love, Poland, and the Making of a Travel Writer,” will be published in November.
Presented with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this programming do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
