Recommended reading

Non-fiction | Poetry

Non-fiction

The following reading material is recommended for a better understanding the Romani people.
Those marked with an asterisk (*) are suitable for young-adult readers.

* Romanichal Gypsies by Thomas Acton and David Gallant - ISBN 0 7502 1260 8

Part of the Threatened Cultures Series , this book is aimed at young adult readers. It is excellent for teachers researching the Romani people for a class study or project.
Amazon.com

* The Gypsies by Jan Yoors - ISBN 10:0881333050, ISBN 13:9780881333053

An account of how the author joined a Romani travelling group in Belgium before World War II. It gives much insight into the Romani culture of that era.
Chapters.Indigo.ca | Amazon.com

* Crossing by Jan Yoors - ISBN 0297995049

A sequel to his earlier book, this tells about the Roma in France during World War II under the Nazi occupation.
Toronto Public Library | Chapters.Indigo.ca | Amazon.com

* Gypsies, Preachers and Big White Bears: One Hundred Years on Country Roads
    by Claudia Smith - ISBN 1-896182-91-7 (Paperback)

This book is based on oral history of the Ottawa Valley region. Chapter 9 is devoted to oral history recorded from residents of the area dating from the period when Canadian Roma were still nomadic with horses, wagons and tents.
Toronto Public Library | Chapters.Indigo.ca

The Attempted Genocide and Ethnocide of the Roma , by Ronald Lee.

Article published in Cultivating Canada: Reconciliation through the Lens of Cultural Diversity , published by Aboriginal Healing Foundation. ISBN 978-1-897285-98-5
Amazon.com

The world must know: The history of the Holocaust as told in the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
by Michael Berenbaum - ISBN 10:080188358X, ISBN 13:9780801883583

Documents compelling human stories of the Holocaust and includes new insights and updates based on archival information inaccessible until after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the Communist regimes of Eastern and Central Europe.
Toronto Public Library | Chapters.Indigo.ca

The Ghosts of Europe: Journeys through Central Europe's Troubled Past and Uncertain Future
by Anna Porter - ISBN 10:155365515X, ISBN 13:9781553655152

Interviewing people throughout Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary, Porter examines the impact of democracy as these countries struggle "under the weight of history and memory." She found disturbing signs of old attitudes, bringing into question Central Europe’s ability to control public demonstrations of hatred, the rise of racial tensions, and the emergence of fascist parties.
Toronto Public Library | Chapters.Indigo.ca
Winner of the Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing

A History of the Gypsies of Eastern Europe and Russia - ISBN 0-312-12496-7 (Paperback).

A history of the Roma in the countries of eastern Europe from their arrival through the Communist era and in the new democracies.
Toronto Public Library | Chapters.Indigo.ca

The Gypsies by Fraser Angus - ISBN 0-631-19605-6 (Paperback).

An excellent discussion of the Roma from their origin until modern times.
Toronto Public Library

Gypsies, An Interdisciplinary Reader , edited by Diane Tong - ISBN: 0-8153—2549-5 (Hardcover).

A collection of articles by many authors, most of whom are accredited scholars on Roma.
Chapters.Indigo.ca

Gypsies Under The Swastika by Donald Kendrick and Grattan Puxon - ISBN: 0 900458 658 (Paperback).

The best work to date in English on the Romani Holocaust.
Chapters.Indigo.ca

Gypsies and Flamenco, The emergence of the art of flamenco in Andalusia by Bernard Leblon - ISBN 0-900-45859-3 (Paperback).

One of the best works on the origins of flamenco as it relates to the Spanish Roma.
Chapters.Indigo.ca

Gypsies, A Multidisciplinary Annotated Bibliography by Diane Tong - ISBN 0-8240-7541-2 (Hardcover).

An invaluable tool for the serious researcher, this lists all categories of sources on Roma including adult non-fiction and fiction, children's books, scholarly papers, theses and articles.
Chapters.Indigo.ca

We Are the Romani People: Volume 28 by Ian F. Hancock - ISBN 1902806190

An illustrated view into the history, health, food, culture and society of the Roma by a Romani author.
Toronto Public Library | Chapters.Indigo.ca

Pariah Syndrome: An Account of Gypsy Slavery and Persecution by Ian F. Hancock - ISBN 0897200799

Gypsy slavery and persecution traced back throughout history
Toronto Public Library | Chapters.Indigo.ca

A Handbook of Vlax Romani by Ian F. Hancock - ISBN 10:0893572586, ISBN 13:9780893572587

An in-depth description of the Vlax Romani language.
Chapters.Indigo.ca

Romani Dictionary: English – Kalderash by Ronald Lee - ISBN 10:0981162673, ISBN 13:9780981162676

A comprehensive modern dictionary of Romani dialects.
Chapters.Indigo.ca

Poetry

Kanadake-Romane Mirikle (Canadian-Romani Pearls) edited by Hedina Sijercic

To commemorate International Romani Day, April 8, 1999, the Roma Community Centre has produced this first-ever booklet of Canadian Romani poems. This 71-page booklet contains poems by Canadian-born Roma, Roma immigrants and Roma refugees – Hedina Sijercic, Mario Iñes-Torres, Julia Lovell, Ronald Lee, Nina Bottaccini, Amdi Asanoski, Aranka Mihalovits and Ron Bankley.
 
The poems are in English or in Romani or Spanish with English translations. The booklet also gives an historical overview of Romani poetry/ballads in Canada, an article on Kali Sara or Saint Sara and the Romani Anthem, Opre Roma. The anthem is in English and Romani, with the music and a description of how it came to be written. There is also an account of the formation of the Romani Union on April 8, 1971 where the anthem, the Romani flag and the resolution to approach the United Nations for NGO (Non-Governmental Organisation) status were officially adopted. The booklet includes an index and a glossary of Romani words.
 
The booklet was prepared for Roma Night, a Canadian Roma poetry reading and music jam at the Plaza Flamingo on April 8, 1999, to commemorate International Romani Day. This was a great success and the first time in Toronto that a Romani event was organized by Roma for Roma and the general public.
 
Printed copies are sold out, but an e-book version will soon be available through this website. Proceeds will go to support the work of the Roma Community Centre.

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