Background
Orfalea was born and raised in Los Angeles, California.
(Following his father's tragic death, American poet and hi...)
Following his father's tragic death, American poet and historian Gregory Orfalea journeyed to France to attend the first reunion of his father's World War II infantry battalion, the ill-fated 551st. What he found was a compelling and unsolved mystery: why was the 551st sent to its destruction in a futile assault on Rochelinval during the Battle of the Bulge, and why has this heroic unit's memory been all but erased from military history? Orfalea explores this mystery, and the result goes beyond recovering a crucial chapter in the annals of World War II. Through its characters, narration of dramatic and deadly action, and reconstruction of the period and its mores, this work seeks to recover a deeper moral and cultural reality - the lost legacy of that generation's understanding of manhood and heroism.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0684871092/?tag=2022091-20
(A powerful, personal account of some one hundred years of...)
A powerful, personal account of some one hundred years of Arab American history in the United States. In the tradition of Alex Haley's Roots and Irving Howe's World of Our Fathers, Before the Flames combines Orfalea's skills as storyteller with his vigorous research, sharing not only his personal revelations but also the comprehensive history of the Arabs in the United States. Illustrated.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0292707487/?tag=2022091-20
Orfalea was born and raised in Los Angeles, California.
Orfalea has taught graduate and undergraduate school at the Claremont Colleges, Georgetown University, and Westmont College, where he is currently director of the Center for California Studies. He teaches creative nonfiction, the short story, the literature of California, and Middle Eastern émigré literature. Kirkus Review said of Journey to the Sun: "A California story has become an American story." The San Francisco Chronicle said, "Orfalea writes from his own spiritual heart and soars into the realm of poetry.
His drama never lags." Doctor Allan Figueroa Deck, Cassasa Chair and Professor of Theological Studies at Loyola Marymount University noted, "Serra comes alive in this volume as in no other." About the memoir of Orfalea"s youth in Los Angeles, Richard Rodriguez said, "These essays, recollecting Gregory Orfalea"s American life, are delightful and wise.".
(Following his father's tragic death, American poet and hi...)
(100+ years of the history of Arab Americans combines a hi...)
(A powerful, personal account of some one hundred years of...)