Quarantine Reflections Across Two Worlds

By Nora D. Clinton

Quarantine Reflections across Two Worlds is a captivating memoir about life in two strikingly different worlds, an ardent defense of freedom, and a thought-provoking analysis of current events and ideologies. Nora D. Clinton shares her story of growing up in Bulgaria—from her childhood under communism, to watching the Berlin Wall fall in twelfth grade, to arriving in America, which she made her home. Throughout, she illustrates the dangers of utopian abstractions and the need for common sense and humanity. Her story is for anyone trying to fathom the current surreal reality—fascination with socialism, 2020 pandemic and protests, and so much more.

“It is all about basic humanity, so often drowned these days by enthusiastic efforts to promote abstract ‘values.’ The author reminds us that totalitarian mentality is essentially anti-humanist—no matter whether it claims to be defending a communist or a Nazi state, a nature deprived of people, or the equality of sexes by imposing manufactured uniformity of their roles.”
—Philip Dimitrov, PhD, former prime minister of Bulgaria, ambassador of Bulgaria to the USA and of the EU to Georgia, current constitutional justice and VP of the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe

“Quarantine Reflections across Two Worlds is a vivid and compelling account of childhood and youth in communist Bulgaria, which says, in a few words and through illustrative stories, a lot about the misery of living in a totalitarian state. Its talented author, Nora D. Clinton, possesses wide culture and knowledge, which enables her to offer interesting comments about the superiority of liberty and democracy and to address some clichés of the contemporary political discourse.”
—Nassya Kralevska-Owens, journalist and author of numerous books, including Communism Versus Democracy—Bulgaria 1944 to 1997, whose Bulgarian edition became an unsurpassed bestseller about recent history.

“Dr. Nora D. Clinton’s vivid booklet is part personal memoir of a childhood under communist tyranny and part impassioned tribute to political liberty. It is a product of noble independence of spirit and an ode to it.”
—Andrew Bernstein, PhD, American philosopher and internationally acclaimed lecturer and author of fiction and academic books, including Heroes, Legends, Champions: Why Heroism Matters.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Sep 18, 2020
• ISBN: 9781480895997

Nora D. Clinton

Nora D. Clinton was born and raised in Sofia, Bulgaria. She received degrees from several universities in Europe and the United States, including a PhD in classics from Cornell University. She has taught Greek and Latin languages and has published extensively on the subject of ancient documents on stone. She works in the field of legal operations management and is a co-founder and pro bono co-president of a nonprofit organization dedicated to academic cooperation and American values. She lives in Northern Virginia with her husband and son.

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Copyright © 2020 Nora D. Clinton.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

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ISBN: 978-1-4808-9598-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-9599-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2020917647

Archway Publishing rev. date: 09/17/2020

CONTENTS

Chapter 1 Early Years

Why I Want to Visit Portugal

Kindergarten Crumbs

Radioactive Spinach

Down with Article One!

Chapter 2 Academic Pursuits

A Rainy Day in London

A Ham-and-Cheese Sandwich, Please!

Dangerous People or the Value of Classical Education

Great Spirits versus Useful Idiots

Chapter 3 Quarantine Reflections

A Bird’s-Eye View

The Good Fight

Thanos and the Avengers

The Greek King and the Potatoes

Cassie Nightingale, Venus, and Mars

Epilogue

To my son,

my sister,

and the children of tomorrow

Without freedom of thought, there can be no such thing as wisdom; and no such thing as public liberty, without freedom of speech; which is the right of every man, as far as by it, he does not hurt or control the right of another: and this is the only check it ought to suffer, and the only bounds it ought to know.

Benjamin Franklin, Silence Dogood, No. 8, 9 July 1722

CHAPTER 1

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Early Years

Why I Want to Visit Portugal

When I was a child, my grandfather was my best friend, although he was seventy years my senior. I grew up in a