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D.P. DISPLACED PERSON, a memoir by Margarita Meyendorff’s will touch the heart of all readers, whether they were immigrants or not. She writes from the soul and her language echoes the rhythms of the songs she sings. Margarita Meyendorff is a writer whose lyrical gifts entertain even as she breaks your heart. A literary performance no one will forget.
–Laura Shaine Cunningham, author of Sleeping Arrangements and A Place in the Country
A standing ovation to seasoned performer and new-minted author Margarita Meyendorff for this heartfelt and beautifulmemoir. What a life she has lived! Anyone following the current wave of refugee crises will be moved by this tale of hard-won survival, and by its author’s ebullient spirit and unquenchable lust for life. The little girl born in a refugee camp has found her rightful home: on stage, in a loving marriage, and now on our bookshelves.
– Nina Shengold, author of Clearcut and River of Words
The daughter of a Russian Baron, Mourka (Margarita Meyendorff) was born in a Russian displaced persons camp in Germany – far from the opulence of Imperial Russia which was her birthright.
Her father danced with Anastasia, attended balls and military schools but a series of wars destroyed this privileged existence – and her parents were themselves displaced- forced to flee the ancestral estates and run through Nazi Germany.
As a tiny immigrant girl, Margarita’s first American home was the estate of an eccentric millionaire impresario which served as a temporary enclave of Russian aristocrats – given quarters in elephant stalls.Her childhood ran like a roller coaster of highs – performing as a rooster to applause for the Russian Orthodox audience and lows – coping with her traumatized and disturbed parents.
At 18, Mourka escaped to the road- most often taking to the stage where she found her natural footing, but then always on the run – moving, displaced around the US and then Europe – hitting ecstatic highs as a performer and lows in her personal life.
In her search, she toured the country as a gypsy performer in a caravan and went from a rusted trailer back to her ancestral castle…seeking, always seeking her rightful place and some sense of peace. Can she ever “unpack” and feel she is truly at that place which always has been so elusive: HOME.
Margarita Meyendorff’s journey is thrillingly personal yet universal-the journey we all take, to find our true selves and safe haven.