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My Second University: Memories from Romanian Communist Prisons

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My Second University marks a distinct departure from other, similar stories. This is a very Transylvanian book, not just for its contents, characters and situations it describes, but especially for the directness and forcefulness of its presentation. It is not because one may have read about Solzhenitsyn' gulags that these memoirs may be less poignant, quite the contrary. The difference here lies in the tone of the narrative, which is neither strident nor bitter-it is instead quietly factual, almost clinical, as the medical eye surveys the human sufferings. For this prisoner's enquiring mind, this experience became a learning curve, not so much his Golgotha, for he was far too dignified to present it as such, rather something, which he describes metaphorically as his "second university". . . . This book lets the world at large know the real face of Communist brutality. It is a memoir with a special relevance, bringing a new angle-that of a medical doctor and a fine observer of human frailty-to the prison literature. . . . It is a real blessing to have such work made available to an Anglo-Saxon readership. My Second University should be read by everybody young and old, as a sobering tale of our luck in the West for having missed such experience.

I warmly recommend this book not only to Romanians, but to all who are interested in finding out the TRUTH about the horrors of Communism. It is a great tribute to all the people who believed in freedom, justice and sacrificed their lives for the values they believed in. It is a great legacy for future generations to inform them and to encourage them to stand for what they believe in. Dr. Stanciu Stroia was a hero not only to his grandson, Dr. Dan Dusleag, who superbly authored the book, but to all of us who read it. The book is easy to read, has an elegant style, and the pictures included are a bridge to the past.

I've read several books by political prisoners of the Romanian regime. This one does not discuss as much the details of the physical horrors of the prisons. The concept of a person being visited by the securitate late at night, put into prison for years, and familial contacts severed, is horrible enough. This story is told by a doctor, who by very nature is compassionate and sworn by oath to heal others. Dr. Stroia lived by that oath. In the book he mentions a prison doctor who "prescribed" that his patient throw himself onto the barbed wire as a cure for depression. The patient followed his doctor's orders and was shot. Dr. Stroia's humanity not only remained intact, but it grew. His "second university" tore a giant chasm in his life, but his inner strength carried him through.

This story is extremely important today, helping us to understand more about what happened in Eastern Europe and why there is still much of a struggle there since 1989. I think in the US we have tended to think "Oh good! Communism has toppled and everything will be just fine." The scars of a monstrous regime run deep and don't go away easily. We also must look at ourselves to make sure that we don't create a system that is not accountable to the people it governs. This exceptional story shows us that pride, integrity, and compassion are necessary to carry us through evil times and leave us intact on the other side. I highly recommend this very readable addition to the literature on Romania's modern history.

Hello Dan Dusleag,

It was a pleasure meeting and talking with you at Nashville, IN. I have read your grandfather's memoir "My Second University" and admire him very much, he never gave up hope.

The book conveys a similar feeling that I have about my own family's history. As I may have mentioned to you, my mother was born in the Banat region of Romania, my father in Ukraine.

In revealing his story, your grandfather never harbors feelings of resentment or animosity against his oppressors. You also commented in the epilogue that you too only shelterd the hope that the intrinsic values in all of us will eventually bear fruit, compensating for the suffering of the past. Many of us also try to hold fast to these convictions. And yet we are marked by the memories of these experiences, as are the oppressors. And the feeling of these memories are passed on to our children. And some of us have the need to talk about these experiences, while others hope they are never revealed. And what kind of relationships do communities have, and individuals have, that do not share the truth of their histories with each other -- or is it best, at times, to keep some things unspoken, and to let them go, if this is possible, or even right to do? Your grandfather's memoir is a story of forgiveness, and it provides insight on how to proceed foreward.

My Second University recounts a sad part of our world's history, unfortunately so reminiscent of so much that has happened throughout the past and continues today. In the midst of all of the blackness, Dr Stanciu Stroia, a real, honest-to-goodness hero, stood tall, took the blows, bent, but did not break. His story deserves to be told. May God bless this book, causing it to come into the hands of the people who NEED to read it, and whose lives will be impacted by its tales. Kudos to Dr. Dusleag for honoring the memory of his grandfather, and at the same time, the memory of all those who lived through the Communist purges of the 1950s all over the Soviet sphere.

I came across this book while doing a search on Romania, and I purchased it because I was intrigued by its subject and reassured by the positive reviews on this page. This is a well-written account of life in a vindictive communist prison environment, and a remarkable fresco of Transylvanian society, from the prewar constitutional monarchy to the postwar communist dictatorship. The story is easy to follow and augmented by useful historical notes. It is difficult not to admire the book's main character, who survives social and political turmoil with a frail body, but an intact mind and a free soul. If you are interested in the history of communism, and if you enjoy reading memoirs, this poignant one is for you. A well deserved thumbs up for this book!

I've been educated by My Second University! Not only does the book tell a story that cried out to be told, it is fascinating reading. I had to keep reminding myself that these events occured in my lifetime and not in the middle ages. What a courageous man of faith Stanciu Stroia was! I'm grateful that the authors shared family photos in the book; it so helped to personalize the whole reading experience.

I raise my hat in front of a quality book! I can only imagine the tremendous efforts required in its production. The writing style is of a high caliber and the content is rich, with memorable events and characters. . . . I recommend My Second University to all exiled Romanians, young and old, for a better understanding of their recent Communist history. However, I especially urge the average American and Canadian reader to take a close look at this book! Thank you.

What is the nature of men who justify treachery when their power is threatened? Have they learned that people living in fear are easily controlled and willing to tolerate erosion of their human rights? Dr. Stanciu Stroia suffered hellish mental and physical torture rather than compromising his principles. . . . "My Second University" is an important documentation of treachery in our time and deserves wide distribution in libraries, universities and government archives. As crimes against humanity are subject to more exposure, we shall learn about human behavior and find means to improve it. . . . Thank you.

This book - about the unjust imprisonment of Dr. Stanciu Stroia during the Communist regime in Romania - leaves us with long lasting impressions. This is a memoir written without any declamatory undertones, as its main point lies upon telling the truth. Stanciu Stroia searched for the truth, not only for his truth, but also for the hidden truth of an epoch. Viewed from this angle, he was a philosopher, because he loved the truth of which he was robbed of during the most fruitful years of his life.

This book is also a statement about a man who not only wanted to build a future for his family, but had an honest desire to contribute to the furthering of his community. For many years, he headed a hospital in Transylvania and treated poor people for free. Dr. Stroia was a physician who never forgot about his Hippocratic Oath. That is, for as long as he was allowed to honor it, and even after he was unjustly imprisoned for long years in the most inhuman and terrible conditions in Communist Romania.

In addition, Stanciu Stroia offers us another interesting standpoint: that of an imprisoned physician. How a physician sees and deals not only with the moral sufferance - triggered off by the injustice of arbitrary imprisonment - but also with the deterioration of his and others' physical constitution. The clear cut evaluation of the decline in his health is incredible. He becomes his own patient and tries to find solutions to survive, for the benefit of his family: his wife, daughter and son. During the years served in prison, he helps his inmates by giving them useful medical advice, and fights for some of them to be sent to the infirmary when their health deteriorates. He finds the inner strength to uplift their morale. Moreover, he maintains his dignity in the most difficult moments of incarceration.

Stanciu Stroia is a man who did not want to live in the deep quagmire of compromise. Because he was brought up in a small and beautiful village in Transylvania where people knew only what truth and sincerity is. Yes, I think our hero's icon was the truth and he could not see beyond it.

What we learn from him is that he had to suffer not only during imprisonment, but also afterwards. He was denied his job back in the hospital he headed for years. He never regained his normal weight. He suffered from heart disease during incarceration and had to be operated twice later on, because his tissues could not longer resist physical strain. More important, because of years of poor nutrition, he was plagued by scurvy and lost his ability to learn. . . .

There was only one thing Satnciu Stroia could not comprehend. And that was: why?
After reading this book, we still cannot understand why a destiny, a family, so many families were destroyed during those dark years?

Stanciu Stroia managed to graduate from his second university physically destroyed, but not beaten or crushed. The punishment inflicted upon him and the so-called re-education failed, because there was no ground for him to be re-educated. His education in the remote Transylvanian village of Cacova and the University of Cluj was so good that it survived a cruel regime, being deeply rooted in a genuine moral belief: that the love for others is more important than one's own life.