How We Survived Communism & Even Laughed

This book was chosen by my book club by a member who grew up in Romania. I found it very thought-provoking...some felt it was depressing, as the title tends to make you think it would be a bit more light-hearted. Unfortunately, life in a communist country seems to have little light-heartedness to write about. It was so interesting that when the author came to America to speak at universities, the professors expected her to be pro-communist. When they found that she told the unvarnished truth about life in communist Romania, they were no longer interested in hearing her story. As Marxist wannabes, they chose to remain in denial. I realized that my Romanian friend chose this book to give westerners a glimpse at the kind of life communism offers. It's chilling. This book should be read by every person who thinks socialism/communism offers any solutions to the so-called "inequities" of a capitalistic system. From those who are in a position to know--it clearly does not.

I started reading this book for a film class and I suddenly had to purchase my own copy.The amount of information that you get from reading it is insurmountable, things that you don't see on history books or documentaries. Much of the stories are geared towards women and this makes the book even more relevant, it depicts communism through women's eye and that is something unheard of before.The day-to-day life of the characters is so brutally honest and simple that you feel compassion to each one of them, after reading this book I began to notice how privileged I am since I never lived in a communist country and never had to go through what these people did.

This book is a reality check and an eye-opener to a lot of people, I've asked several of my friends to read it. My mom and I both cried when we read it. My mom's family is from eastern Europe and I had only heard little bits and pieces of stories from my grandma. This book helped me see things a lot better. If you have any interest in eastern European culture, history or the modern history of feminism and human rights, and you like reading about more personal accounts, then this would be a good book to read. Because of the cold war and American/Western attitudes towards this area of the world (whether those are right or not is another story for another book), there is a lot that happened that we don't know about during this time period. It's interesting to see things from a different POV and Slavenka does a great job showing us what it was like to be there.

Purchased this book for my university history class. Easy to read, very well written and informative!

"Soviet Times" in East Europe is like combining the 50's through 90's in here (USA) In some places and for some people, it was a bit different, but overall this book pretty much reflects just how it was and what you did to live within it. As the years go by, Soviet Times with probably become a more romantic time, like "The good ole days", which often were not all that good. Anyway, if you want a good taste of that era, this book is good reference.

Easy, accessible account of living under communism during the 80s. This book mostly struck me with details like toilet paper being difficult to procure, things like that. It's something that you don't necessarily need a lot of context to read, so as a casual history book I'd recommend this.

i read this book for a class on life under communism. this book was so interesting and i really love how each chapter is broken into smaller stories. it really provides insight into what daily life was like under communism.

A great window into every day life under communism. A fantastic historical narrative that focuses on things not normally covered in history class, like communist toilet paper, sharing apartments, talking with the man who listens to all your phone calls, etc.

Very vivid descriptions and recollections of how day-to-day life in communist Yugoslavia, and other central European cities, actually was for people - and women in particular. Felt very sorry to come to the end as I felt that, thanks to Drakulic's sound writing and intimate style, I'd come to know just a little of a place and a time that now suddenly seems so far off. Will definately seek out other more recent works of hers as i'd like to know more of this impressive writer's take on what has been happening in her life and her part of the world in the years since this was published in the early-1990s.

This portrait of life under communist rule focuses on life for those whose voices are often neglected - women, families and those who while chafing under the bit of communism had no alternative but to carry on living. Required reading if you're interested in Russia, as it'll fill in some of the gaps left by mainstream literature, particularly on gender issues.

I was born just 12 years later in the same town and my memories are nothing like the ones in this book. Extraordinary that 12 years can make such a difference.

So far the best account of lives of woman in socialist part of Europe in the 80s. Drake lid is a critical writer and an objective observer.

This is a really good book