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Crazy People Like Us: Love & Loss on the Other Side of the World
NEW MEMOIR LOOKS AT HOW AMERICAN TEACHER HANDLED LIFE, LOVE, AND LOSS IN RUSSIA
Crazy People Like Us examines fundamental questions of living beyond the comfort zone Harold Campbell left his 25-year career as a daily newspaper reporter and editor in December 2010 to move to Russia to marry his fiancée, Nadya, and start a new life teaching English as a Foreign Language. Five and a half years later, which includes five months the couple taught English in India, Nadya died unexpectedly after surgery, and Campbell returned to the U.S.
How Campbell handled the shock of his wife’s death and the subsequent grief he underwent is one of the main themes of his memoir, Crazy People Like Us.
Told from a Christian perspective, Crazy People Like Us is more than just a chronicle of an American English teacher’s reactions to everyday life in Putin’s Russia and his observations of Russian history and culture. Campbell uses the circumstances he experienced to examine such universal themes as reconciliation (both person to person and person to God), mutual respect between peoples of different cultures and faith in the middle of uncertainty.
Crazy People Like Us is Campbell’s first book. Previously, he worked as a journalist at daily newspapers in Kansas and Nebraska, where he won a number of Associated Press and state press association awards. His freelance articles have also appeared in several Christian publications and historical journals.
Crazy People Like Us examines fundamental questions of living beyond the comfort zone Harold Campbell left his 25-year career as a daily newspaper reporter and editor in December 2010 to move to Russia to marry his fiancée, Nadya, and start a new life teaching English as a Foreign Language. Five and a half years later, which includes five months the couple taught English in India, Nadya died unexpectedly after surgery, and Campbell returned to the U.S.
How Campbell handled the shock of his wife’s death and the subsequent grief he underwent is one of the main themes of his memoir, Crazy People Like Us.
Told from a Christian perspective, Crazy People Like Us is more than just a chronicle of an American English teacher’s reactions to everyday life in Putin’s Russia and his observations of Russian history and culture. Campbell uses the circumstances he experienced to examine such universal themes as reconciliation (both person to person and person to God), mutual respect between peoples of different cultures and faith in the middle of uncertainty.
Crazy People Like Us is Campbell’s first book. Previously, he worked as a journalist at daily newspapers in Kansas and Nebraska, where he won a number of Associated Press and state press association awards. His freelance articles have also appeared in several Christian publications and historical journals.
182 pages, Paperback
Published December 10, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
June 23, 2022
A unique perspective of an American who experienced Putin's Russia from the inside.
In Crazy People Like Us: Love & Loss on the Other Side of the World, Harold Campbell, a journalist, editor, Christian, and an English teacher, shows that, after all, people are not so different: we all want to love and be loved.
Harold Campbell was searching for a penfriend when he saw a photo of Nadya, a charming English teacher from Siberia. Despite the distances - and bureaucracy -the two found they shared many similarities in views on life, love, and religion. It was easier for the author to settle in Russia and become a teacher of English as a second language than for Nadya to move to the U.S. Without anticipating what he was getting into, the author bought a ticket to Moscow.
The book covers more than five years of marriage and observations about the Russian way of thinking, culture, and language. Some differences were hard to get used to, as the mindset that a thief is not a thief unless caught red-handed. (Another god of Russians is halyava, a freebie. For example, Russians do not care about the author's rights. The first book reviews on the biggest bookselling site always contain snapshots of book pages. Movies/TV shows, translated from English to Russian, appear in Russian webspace almost immediately after the release, and they are free.)
The book reminded me of how the language reflects our worldview, including the political affiliations. Patriotism over nationalism, fighters for independence over separatist groups, or conflict over genocide; the slightest change in wording makes the other person go off the rails.
I recommend the book as a lovely yet insightful memoir for those who want to dive into the 'deep Russian soul.' We justify hate and distrust because that brings a feeling of superiority. Crazy Like Us is a refreshing respite, filled with love and compassion - and a few chuckles.
In Crazy People Like Us: Love & Loss on the Other Side of the World, Harold Campbell, a journalist, editor, Christian, and an English teacher, shows that, after all, people are not so different: we all want to love and be loved.
Harold Campbell was searching for a penfriend when he saw a photo of Nadya, a charming English teacher from Siberia. Despite the distances - and bureaucracy -the two found they shared many similarities in views on life, love, and religion. It was easier for the author to settle in Russia and become a teacher of English as a second language than for Nadya to move to the U.S. Without anticipating what he was getting into, the author bought a ticket to Moscow.
The book covers more than five years of marriage and observations about the Russian way of thinking, culture, and language. Some differences were hard to get used to, as the mindset that a thief is not a thief unless caught red-handed. (Another god of Russians is halyava, a freebie. For example, Russians do not care about the author's rights. The first book reviews on the biggest bookselling site always contain snapshots of book pages. Movies/TV shows, translated from English to Russian, appear in Russian webspace almost immediately after the release, and they are free.)
The book reminded me of how the language reflects our worldview, including the political affiliations. Patriotism over nationalism, fighters for independence over separatist groups, or conflict over genocide; the slightest change in wording makes the other person go off the rails.
I recommend the book as a lovely yet insightful memoir for those who want to dive into the 'deep Russian soul.' We justify hate and distrust because that brings a feeling of superiority. Crazy Like Us is a refreshing respite, filled with love and compassion - and a few chuckles.
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August 31, 2023This book is about many things, and I enjoyed it on many levels.
Ordinary people stepping out of their comfort zone. A close and observant look at different cultures. The contrast between the simple Christian faith that has somehow remained unchanged in 2000 years, and both ritual-filled formalised religion and the money-grabbing prosperity gospel. Love, bereavement and grief.
Harold and Nadya meet online, and soon Harold finds himself in Russia, learning to cope with culture and attitudes very different to his own. Soon after the wedding, they spend six months in India teaching English to orphans. Nominally Christian, the orphanage is not always quite what it seems, and they come face to face with the fact that many people can wear the face of religion simply to make money.
Back in Russia, Harold learns to understand the people, and his insights into Russia, its history and its attitudes, are very topical in this time of conflict.
Harold's descriptions of the people and places he visits are a mixture of keen observation and gentle humour, and a pleasure to read.
Sadly, Harold must come to learn to deal with bereavement and grief when Nadya unexpectedly doesn't make it through a routine operation. His struggle for acceptance and the will to rebuild his life, and the faith that carries him through it, will be helpful to anyone who has to deal with the loss of a loved one.
I'd recommend this book to anyone who's interested in learning about what life in other countries is really like.
Ordinary people stepping out of their comfort zone. A close and observant look at different cultures. The contrast between the simple Christian faith that has somehow remained unchanged in 2000 years, and both ritual-filled formalised religion and the money-grabbing prosperity gospel. Love, bereavement and grief.
Harold and Nadya meet online, and soon Harold finds himself in Russia, learning to cope with culture and attitudes very different to his own. Soon after the wedding, they spend six months in India teaching English to orphans. Nominally Christian, the orphanage is not always quite what it seems, and they come face to face with the fact that many people can wear the face of religion simply to make money.
Back in Russia, Harold learns to understand the people, and his insights into Russia, its history and its attitudes, are very topical in this time of conflict.
Harold's descriptions of the people and places he visits are a mixture of keen observation and gentle humour, and a pleasure to read.
Sadly, Harold must come to learn to deal with bereavement and grief when Nadya unexpectedly doesn't make it through a routine operation. His struggle for acceptance and the will to rebuild his life, and the faith that carries him through it, will be helpful to anyone who has to deal with the loss of a loved one.
I'd recommend this book to anyone who's interested in learning about what life in other countries is really like.
December 27, 2024
Crazy People Like Us is an excellent read about two people from two different cultures who fall in love and then the grief experienced from loss. It explains some of the cultural differences between living in the United States and Russia. This book is a page-turner and I didn’t want to put it down.
September 26, 2023
The author does a great job taking you on a journey that exposes you to Russian history, everyday life, travel of a foreigner, then, to a deeply passionate relationship he experiences during that time. It is easy to read. I had a hard time putting it down.
November 13, 2022
Love this book! It offers a unique perspective of an American living abroad in Russia and India.
January 9, 2024
Wow
What an incredible insight into the culture of Russia and the relationship in between so many miles and culture. And Harolds great love and loss.
What an incredible insight into the culture of Russia and the relationship in between so many miles and culture. And Harolds great love and loss.
September 21, 2022
"Crazy People Like Us" is a thorough and thought-provoking page-turner. This book takes a seeker on a journey that exposes details surrounding grief, as well as cultural and religious differences. Harold Campbell presents content that encourages curiosity and introspection by taking the reader’s hand and walking step-by-step through real life examples. The book's relevancy to today's current events is worth noting, as the author chronicles his life as an American English teacher amidst Russian history and culture. Harold's willingness to be candid and vulnerable throughout allows for a remarkable memoir. He shares knowledge, understanding and experience in a masterful piece that can enrich readers’ lives in numerous ways. Do not bypass this book. It is well-worth your time.
June 12, 2023
excellent read and guide in to the mindset of Russia and India ... wonderful story of "love and loss," just as Harold Campbell so aptly said in the title
March 23, 2023
Well-written, highly enjoyable. The author writes in a way that paces the story as though you’re in the same room. A very moving book of love, connection, international culture, loss, and the grief that comes after (and then coping with the grief), Mr. Campbell’s book is an outstanding read.
September 19, 2023
The best writer I ever met!! Congratulations Harold 🫂🥰
September 25, 2023
Such a heart warming story. I enjoy it a lot!!
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews