r/familyhistory

Just published a book about my family in Calabria
▲ 51 r/familyhistory+2 crossposts

Just published a book about my family in Calabria

After over a decade of interviews, research, writing, editing, and reliving my family’s remarkable journey, I’m excited to announce the release of my book, From Cannolaci to the Brickyard.

This story traces my parent’s path from a small village in Calabria, Italy, to the Brickyard neighborhood of Lynn, Massachusetts. It is inspired by the memories and stories told to me by my parents, years of historical and genealogical research, and the imagination needed to bring their journey to life. It has been a labor of love, and I’m happy to be able to share it with all of you.

I’ll be announcing details for a Book Release Party very soon, and I hope my family, friends, and everyone who has supported me along the way will join me in celebrating this special milestone.
You can check out the book now on Amazon.
Thank you to everyone who encouraged me, shared family stories, answered questions, and supported me with your enthusiasm throughout this project. Your encouragement has meant more than you know. ❤️

u/Responsible_Buy_404 — 6 days ago

Started recording my grandparents' stories — wish I'd started years ago

I've started sitting down with my grandparents and recording their stories — just voice recordings on my phone, nothing fancy. It's been eye-opening how much they know that I never thought to ask about: how they met, what their childhood was like, family recipes that were never written down, the kind of wisdom that doesn't make it into photo albums.

The hard part is getting them to open up. My grandfather especially tends to brush things off with 'oh, it was nothing special.' I've found that asking about specific moments works better than big open questions — 'what did your street look like when you were ten?' gets a better answer than 'tell me about your childhood.'

For those of you who've done this — what questions or approaches worked best for drawing out stories from elders who don't think their life was 'interesting enough' to record? I'd love to learn from what's worked for others.

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u/NikhilMacwan — 13 days ago