MY COUSIN IS A CHIEF IN SAMOA
Journalist Johannes Langkilde grew up in cold, windswept Denmark, hearing stories of faraway relatives on the tropical islands of Samoa, one of them a real live chief! A thrilling tale, but obviously too good to be true — or so he thought. Years later, as a foreign correspondent in the United States, he unexpectedly opened a door that would lead to his own very personal South Sea adventure.At a political convention in 2016 he suddenly found himself face to face with Fagafaga Daniel Langkilde of American Samoa. A spark was ignited between the two distant cousins, born on opposite sides of the globe. Their long-distance correspondence ultimately led the author, today a Danish news anchor, to travel with his wife and their two children to Polynesia, landing amidst the large and colorful Samoan branch of the Langkilde family.But the author also had a mission: to chronicle the life and times of his distant uncle, Hans Alfred Langkilde, who left Denmark in 1869 at the age of 25. Along with Samoan relatives he revisits family lore and rediscovers key sites. And as he and his Danish family look back in time to connect the dots, they meet the boundless hospitality and exquisite natural beauty of the Samoan archipelago — and come away enriched.
WHEN THE AMERICANS WENT THEIR SEPARATE WAYS
When the Americans Went Their Separate Ways is an unbiased portrait of a tense country where people are losing touch with each other and perhaps even their own identity. Johannes Langkilde arrived in the United States as a new correspondent for DR (Danish Broadcasting Corporation), just as Barack Obama began his second term in office.
Now he is leaving behind a changed country with Donald Trump in the White House. Drawing from his reports and encounters with ordinary people, he takes us on a personal journey through four tumultuous years in American history - four years that reveal a deep divide in American society. We meet Sue, who was a sales manager in a supermarket but is now homeless. We visit KKK leader Thomas, an outspoken Trump supporter who fears a genocide against white Americans.
And we get up close and personal with Terry, who has spent most of his adult life in prison and now fights a tough battle to change in a society where poor African Americans are not given many opportunities. Through the stories of everyday Americans, the reader gains an understanding of the currents and trends that have led to the American divide and what implications it holds for the future we are heading into. The press writes: "An excellent portrait of the USA, which, to everyone's surprise, preferred Donald Trump over Hillary Clinton."
German version of "My Cousin is Chief in Samoa"
Der Däne der nach Samoa fuhr und seine Familia fand
