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SLOVAKIA: A JOURNEY INTO FREEDOM MARKED BY THE LINDEN TRADITION

 

Slovakia: The Legend of the Linden offers a beautiful, emotive and fresh take on Slovakia’s tumultuous journey into freedom. The dramatic story, full of twists and turns, spans across two millennia and reveals many intrigues and secrets.

 

Far from being a boring exploration of rusty historical facts, this book grips your heart and elevates your soul as you turn the pages to undersand why seemingly little Slovakia is such a giant and champion. The well researched book is written in an accessible manner, each page, full of rich and exciting information, is matched with equally evocative images. Together they help to powerfully communicate the many centuries of Slovak struggle, but also jublication.

 

The book revolves around the symbolism of the Linden tree, the national tree of Slovakia and the sacred tree of the Slavs. The heart shaped Linden leaf reflects not only the location of Slovakia in the heart of Europe, its ancient roots and magnificent future, but also the heartfelt nature of her people. Slovaks truly are a people of generous heart, which is why they have chosen the Lipa insignia to represent them at every step of modern Slovak life.

 

From government ministiries to public monuments, from Slovak passports to the national seal of the country and from folkore all the way to spirituality, the Lipa follows Slovaks at ever step.

 

Behind this ground-breaking publication is the personal drive of two young and talented scholars. Dr Zuzana Palovic and Dr Gabriela Bereghazyova first met while completing their PhDs in the United Kingdom. It was abroad they discovered that every great nation has a story, and every great country has as symbol to represent what it stands for. The time has come for Slovakia to codify its story and this is exactly what the authors masterfully achieved.

 

Zuzana is the daughter of Slovak emigrants who fled the communist regime to become naturalized citizens in Canada. Zuzana grew up in North America, first completing her primary education up north, before graduating from university in the United States. From there on, she set out to explore the world. Having had the privledge to experience life in multiple countries across four continents, did nothing to erode her love and passion for Slovakia. It only strengthened her thirst to know more about her homeland, which drew Zuzana back to Slovakia to explore, study and document the heritage of her home.  

 

Gabriela grew up in the quaint region of Zahorie, Western Slovakia, surrounded by rolling hills and rich Slovak traditions. Sitting under the widespread branches of majestic Linden trees, Gabriela first fell in love with Slovak fairy tales and the valuable lessons they communicated. However, it was not only she began to live, work and study abroad that she truly began to appreciate and understand Slovakia. While conducting her doctorate in the United Kingdom, she made a commitment to help Slovaks share their legacy with the world.

 

Slovakia: The Legend of the Linden represents the well-balanced perspectives of the up and coming international writing duo.This book is dedicated to celebrating Slovaks. Its intention and hope is to awaken a healthy sense of pride for Slovakia among Slovaks by re-narrating their remarkable story. At the same time, the book helps to raise the profile of the country, by introducing Slovakia’s history to a new and foreign audience. Slovakia: The Legend of the Linden makes for a unique personal and representational gift. It is a must have for every Slovak household.