THE KNOCK AT THE DOOR: A JOURNEY THROUGH THE DARKNESS OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
Elizabeth R. Hayford
Library Journal Reviews
May 1, 2007
Ahnert, Margaret Ajemian. The Knock at the Door: A Journey Through
the Darkness of the Armenian Genocide. Beaufort: Beaufort Books,
dist. by Midpoint Trade Bks. 2007. c.240p. ISBN 0-8253-0512-8 [ISBN
978-0-8253-0512-2 ]. $24.95. AUTOBIOG
Ahnert writes of her relationship with her mother, Ester, as she
approaches 99 in an Armenian nursing home in New York, integrating
the experience of an adult daughter connecting with her elderly
mother into the story of her mother’s early years in Armenia. In
the pre-World War I Ottoman Empire, Armenians, like other ethnic
and religious minorities, lived a stable life defined by family,
community, and religious ties. Ester’s childhood in a rural town
was characterized by hard work and enriched by traditional and
seasonal customs and celebrations. That life was destroyed in 1915
when the Ottoman government expelled Armenians from their homes
and confiscated their property. Once-friendly Turkish neighbors
watched as thousands of Armenians were killed by soldiers or died
of exhaustion or starvation during the forced evacuations. Ester
survived by "marriage" to a Turk that included harsh treatment and
heavy labor. She eventually escaped and emigrated to the United
States. This memoir puts the tragic Armenian experience in personal
terms and reminds us Americans of one early genocide as we try to
respond to repeated global disasters. Recommended for its deft balance
between personal story and historic tragedy.-Elizabeth R.
Hayford, formerly with Associated Coll. of the Midwest, Evanston, IL
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
