The Story Behind The Portuguese Immigrant
My name is Devin Meireles, and I wrote a narrative nonfiction book- The Portuguese Immigrant: Atlantic Heritage Story.
This was a wonderful project for me. I had been researching my Portuguese family ancestry for nearly a decade. When the pandemic started, I had extra time to piece all that information together. That quickly evolved into a biography about my grandparents' immigration to Canada and life back home. I always wanted to know why they left the island and how much better their lives were after arriving in Canada. What I discovered was their endless sacrifice for the hope of carving out a better future. That’s what paved the road for me today!
After I completed my manuscript, I reached out to a few publishers but quickly realized that this was a niche subject. Even though genealogy is becoming more of a mainstream topic, it is still far from being a common conversation. But I knew that this story would be interesting to all readers and especially Portuguese descendants. So I pursued self publishing. I got an editor to review my book and consulted professional help to improve the story-telling. When I felt like I had reached my limit (8 revisions later) I finally pulled the trigger and published independently with Amazon KDP. The book has now been available since January 2022.
The entire experience- from research, to writing, to publishing- was cathartic for me and this book will resonate with other people of similar backgrounds and upbringings. It will surely remind you of the tales that you heard from your family growing up. I hope that readers will be inspired to know their own family history, by learning about my story.
The book is about an inspiring true life story that will connect with the reader. Since many of us originate from immigrant families, it's curious to think about how we have become a new generation that are born and raised in Canada and/or the United States. What a privilege! This nation is multicultural and the history of how we found ourselves here is an interesting one.
The Portuguese Immigrant: Atlantic Heritage Story is a narrative non-fiction book about the author’s family history—particularly the lives of their paternal ancestors from Sao Miguel Island in Portugal. The story begins with their great-grandparents before shifting focus to their paternal grandparents and their unconditional love for each other. Their relationship overcame many obstacles of the time and they were physically separated for nearly three years after leaving the homeland. They became immigrants in Canada—a place where the author found themselves born and raised, being something that they are grateful for yet fascinated to reflect on the history of how it happened.
Weaving a wonderful tale of the struggles and triumphs as well as the rich Portuguese culture of their ancestry, the book follows their grandfather, Vovô, who was the impetus for life in the New World. Embarking on the journey of lifetime, they carried out a mission guided by true love to carve out a fighting chance for the future of his family.
The author speaks on various characteristics embodied and behavioural traits that have shaped their sense of self today while forging a deep connection with their ancestors. Understanding more about themselves than anticipated along the way to show that it really is all in the family. The history that behooves us has been set out for those with the privilege to continue down the path—a sentiment that the author draws out with great detail. Their descriptions of events set the scene to take the reader back in time.
Book Information
Release Date: January 18, 2022
Publisher: Independent
Soft Cover: ISBN: 978-1777996611; 197 pages; $18.99; eBook $4.99; FREE on Kindle Unlimited
Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3IsJSSC
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3NUhMAB
Devin Meireles is a healthcare administrative worker from Toronto that moonlights as a freelance writer. Apart from creative writing, Devin enjoys films, history, genealogy, and stamps in his passport. He wrote a narrative nonfiction book about his grandfather’s immigration story and has published many articles in literary journals and cultural magazines.
His latest book is the narrative nonfiction, The Portuguese Immigrant: Atlantic Heritage Story.
You can connect with him at Instagram at www.instagram.com/lusoloonie.
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