Embracing Our Roots
An Ethnic American Rediscovers the Value of Faith, Family, and Tradition
Family portrait of the Tosettos (paternal ancestors), ca. 1925
I am pleased to announce this book is now under contract with Wipf & Stock (Eugene, OR) and due for publication in 2021.
Twentieth-century America provided a platform for countless immigrant peoples who, in turn, contributed to the nation’s landscape as a multicultural, inclusive land of possibilities. Still, the ensuing waves of assimilation work to guise, and even supress, the distinctive customs and beliefs of immigrants and refugees, many feeling coerced to conform to American attitudes towards race, the economy, and politics. Others, inundated with American media, consumerism, and secularity have forgotten those aspects about their family heritage and background that make them unique.
Drawing from personal experience and years of research, Embracing Our Roots considers the significance of rediscovering our ancestral origins in a society where many feel forced to repress, ignore, and even reject their heritage. In an age of immediate access, electronic devices, and virtual social networks, I claim the most promising path for tracing our roots is thumbing through the family archives, hearty conversations with loved ones, and building a family tree. This book is for scholars and general readers alike with interest in the themes of faith-based traditions, food culture, lifestyle, immigration, social class, race, family dynamics, and mental health.
Paul J. Palma 