Short

Mom and Dad weren't well-off or anything and, apart from that, the 60s offered only a limited choice of toys, at least in our neck of the woods. Back when he was working for the Maintenance Department of the Bucharest Transport Services, Dad would bring me – on Father

excerpt  Then on another day I didnt get up to much apart from loafing around the house aimlessly and especially up in the apricot tree where dad didnt know I could climb and get away with it because what does he know? He comes home in the evening and if he plays with

Winters in Ramnicu Valcea were quite mild in those times, though there was plenty of snow (I guess this is the cliché of those whose childhood memories are blurred by their excessive subjectivity); anyway, they unfolded following a certain ritual: at the beginning of December

excerpts In 1888, popular health magazines would dedicate generous coverage to children's games, at the top of their education column. The main endeavor of parents must reside in the education of their infants from their very first day of life onwards, for health,

The movie made after the novel (aka The Graduates, 1987, directed by Nicolae Corjos, b. 1935 - click here to see fragment) – a simple, old story (a young man, Mihai, comes to the big city – Bucharest – to learn in high school, where his passion for math and philosophy

Between September 15 and June 15, every child's life was hijacked by school. School was the children's only officially-sanctioned pursuit. Their only obligation. None of us got any thrill out of getting up early, eyes heavy with sleep, and trudging all the way

END OF THE LAST TRIMESTER. Shortly before holidays, Radu and Dan are learning. To be precisely: they study. Even more precisely: they study zoology. With his head between his hands, balancing on the front feet of his chair, Radu reads aloud: The camel is a vertebrate mammal,

excerpt  Among our scholarly workmates three or four quickly distinguished themselves, and they would compete against each other for first place in our class. Our former prize winning classmate, Motas Constantin, had moved to a science class. Now two pupils, Ciurea Constantin

excerpt  II Ever since the day I came back here, to our old little borough, I have hardly had one idle moment. I scoured all the familiar haunts that still brought to mind the childhood memories – the bright memories of a long gone childhood. I saw, on the banks of

excerpts Master Vucea had no servants. Apart from his cook, we were his only servants. Those of us who were poor and were not dressed German style figured on his purchase list. When he needed to decide who would go to the market place and who to the grocer's he called

excerpt TALKS ON MECHANICSGRAVITY Gheorghe. I should like to ask you something, uncle!Uncle Patru. What is that, my lad?G. I should like to know why this stone falls from my hand as soon as I stop holding it. Anna (laughing). Don't you know why your stone falls? Because

excerpts THREE KM. FROM A. , A BEND IN THE ROAD… N. R. 6 (National Road 6) goes exactly through the centre of the small town of A. Three kilometers from the railway gate, after going over the railway tracks which unite this part of the country with Bucharest (distance: