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A Traveling History
by Madeline Potter
A unique, deeply personal portrait of the nomadic Romani people and their on-going journey that sheds new light on their history, where they have traveled and settled, and what it means to be Romani today.
The word Roma conjures images of free-spirited nomads, creative and easy-going people who choose to eschew social conformity for personal independence and a life on the road. Few know these people's long, tortuous history of being harassed, expelled, deported, demonized, enslaved, and murdered. The Roma is a fascinating history of this people observed from within their world that moves away from stereotypes and the tragedy that has defined them. While Madeline Potter does not overlook the deeply held racism and oppression they have endured, she instead celebrates the Roma's strength and endurance, their ability to resist and survive.
Blending memoir and archival research, her sweeping, heartfelt traveling history moves across Europe, from Tudor England to Romania where she was born and raised; from sixteenth-century Spain to modern Sweden; from Nazi Austria to twenty-first-century France to uncover the interwoven stories and struggles of Roma communities past and present, and what the future may hold for both nomadic, and settled, families on the continent.
The Roma illuminates the overlooked history of Romani individuals and communities throughout the world. By reflecting on her own experiences as a Romani woman, and the stereotyping, marginalization, and racism she has endured, Potter creates a full-bodied, far-reaching history of a people often maligned and misunderstood, and pays tribute to a culture and its traditions.
"English literature PhD Potter debuts with an elegant and impressive history of the Roma people...The result is a powerful call for equality." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"[T]his earnest account will deliver an unsettling education to American readers who are almost certainly unaware that a million Roma live in the country ... [Potter brings] Well-deserved attention to a genuinely neglected minority." —Kirkus Reviews
"The Roma: A Traveling History is a brilliant and vital exploration that intertwines Madeline Potter's personal journey with the rich, often overlooked history of the Roma people. Through compelling accounts and vivid narratives, it challenges stereotypes, revealing the Roma's resilience while rejecting romanticism and fear-based portrayals. As MP Jo Cox said, 'We are far more united and have far more in common with each other than things that divide us'—a truth that resonates powerfully throughout this captivating invitation to see the Roma in their full humanity." —Professor David Morley, author of The Gypsy and the Poet
"By turns heartbreaking and hopeful, this book takes us on a journey through centuries of Romani history and culture. Madeline Potter celebrates the resilience and beauty of the Roma, while bearing witness to the trauma of fairly relentless persecution. In the face of modern far-right politics, The Roma feels urgent and necessary." —Tabitha Stanmore, author of Cunning Folk
This information about The Roma was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Madeline Potter was born in Romania in 1989 and grew up Romani in post-Communist Romania. A scholar of nineteenth-century literature, she earned a PhD in English Literature from the University of York in 2020. She currently works as an early career teaching and research fellow at the University of Edinburgh.
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