In 1965, amid Cold War tensions, Kenneth Cassie journeyed through the Soviet Union as a U.S. representative for an architecture exhibit. His intimate memoir captures the challenges and revelations of cultural diplomacy with unflinching honesty. Each entry reflects the weight of choices that shaped his perspective and bridged divides. Facing uncertainty, he forged unexpected connections in a land both forbidding and fascinating. This compelling account invites readers to explore a pivotal moment in history through one man's eyes. Step into a story as real as it is inspiring.
Ken Cassie is an educator, guitarist, potter, waterman, and lifelong resident of the Jersey shore. In the 1960s, as a guide and translator for the United States Information Agency (USIA), he spent nearly a year representing American architectural marvels in the Soviet Union, making presentations, answering questions, interacting - and sometimes debating politics - with everyday Russian people.