Hayes examines the lives of elderly European immigrants and their descendants living in contemporary America. The book follows multiple generations as they navigate the complexities of maintaining cultural identity while adapting to American society. These families face questions about language, tradition, and belonging as they age in a country that may still feel foreign despite decades of residence. Hayes portrays the daily struggles of seniors who straddle two worlds, caught between the customs of their homeland and the realities of American life. Their adult children serve as cultural bridges, translating not just language but entire ways of being. The narrative reveals how memory, family obligation, and community bonds shape the immigrant experience in later life. At its heart, this is a story about what it means to call a place home when your roots stretch across an ocean.
Genres: family, family-life, american-fiction, american, biography-memoir, 21st-century, academic, cultural-studies
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: cultural-bridge, fish-out-of-water, generational-conflict
Setting: America, United States
Period: Contemporary
Paperback · Springer Pub Co