Strom's opening paragraph states that "with the collapse of communism, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany, Pandora's box has been opened, and its contents - nationalism, pan-Slavism, tribalism, and anti-Semitism - have created an atmosphere of intolerance" for which the "most easily identifiable targets" are the approximately ten million to eleven million Rom living in Europe. Strom presents the people typically called "gypsies" by outsiders through interviews with individuals, most of whom are young. He provides background information about the origin of the Rom in India and some of the reasons for their historic movement across Europe. Casual discrimination against the Rom as well as the intentional acts of prejudice, including those during the Holocaust, are discussed. Strom's many superb full-color photos alternate with others reproduced in black and white to extend the interviews. The book is organized by contemporary nation: Romania, which has 13 distinct Rom tribes; Hungary; Ukraine; and Sweden. A bibliography, glossary and notations for several songs add valuable elements to an important book. (Ages 9-14)

Includes interviews with several generations of gypsies living in Sweden, Hungary, Romania, and the Ukraine today.