Building That Bright Future

Building that Bright Future examines letters and memoirs of Finnish North Americans to provide a rare glimpse of daily life in the 1930s from the edge of the Soviet Union.

Samira Saramo is a Kone Foundation Senior Researcher at the Migration Institute of Finland.

"Saramo’s scrupulous respect for these hitherto buried voices has real value."

Franca Iacovetta, Professor Emerita of History, University of Toronto:

"A moving story of hope, daily life, community, terror, and tragedy as narrated by the Finnish North American letter and memoir writers who sought and struggled to make sense of life in Soviet Karelia. Building That Bright Future is an interdisciplinary history that both enlightens and makes you weep."

Markku Kangaspuro, Professor, Aleksanteri Institute, University of Helsinki :

"Samira Saramo's book is a touching account of the aspirations, dreams, intransigence, joys, and also successes of 6,500 Finns from Canada and the United States who moved to Soviet Karelia in the 1930s. She gives agency to migrants by bringing their different experiences and motives to the discussion, including a whole chapter devoted to children’s experiences and feelings through letters, memoirs, and life-story interviews. It is a beautiful and unique feature of this book as previous research has omitted children, almost without exception, from the picture."

Marlene Epp, Professor of History and Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Waterloo:

"This excellent work of transnational history reveals how ethnic identities and socialist ideals were framed and reframed in the everyday experiences of people who followed their dreams of utopia. Samira Saramo skillfully utilizes a rich body of life writing by Finnish North American migrants to Soviet Karelia to illuminate the intimacies of daily life – at home, at work, at play – in the midst of momentous political events."