What Is America to Me?: An Immigrant's Tribute to The People of America

This book is a view of America and its people as observed by an immigrant through a lifetime of assimilation. It traces the gradual change in his perception of Americans: from the hero worship of his youth gained from meeting American soldiers in WWII, and the influence of imported American pop culture, to that gained from actually coming to America and interacting with everyday Americans. He discovers that Americans don't all stand as tall as John Wayne, don't all sing like Frank Sinatra, don't all give speeches like John Kennedy, and the women don't all look, sing and dance like Debbie Reynolds. Instead he finds a people blessed with common virtues that they use to overcome adversities and improve their lives and that of their neighbors. These virtues are illustrated in each of the forty short stories in the book. The subjects represent a cross section of America and include children, students, teachers, workers, tradesmen, engineers, scientists, inventors, executives, athletes, soldiers, volunteers, religious, and even politicians. The stories are sometimes patriotic, or inspirational, or religious, or humorous, and many times, all of the above. The author hopes that the readers will identify with their fellow Americans in the book and even find a little bit of themselves in them.