Customer Reviews

Welcome to America: The Complete Guide for Immigrants.

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As others have noted, this is a very complete guide to many of the complexities of dealing with life in America, not just from the standpoint of coming to America, but also for those of us who already live and work here - there is information on governmental offices and responsibilities, basic financial rights and obligations, education opportunities and resources, and much more.

According to author and publisher Vitaliy Demin, there are nearly a million legal immigrants to this country every year - America has long been the land most sought in immigration, and the beacon to peoples around the world for a better life economically and politically. As Demin states, this book, written by immigrants for immigrants, approaches the subject from the standpoint an immigrant (and those helping the immigrants) would most need; there are too many aspects of American life that those of us more acclimatised to the culture take for granted. A good example of this is highlighted in the sections that deal with numbers, time, money, shopping and holidays - these are so ingrained, that it is sometimes hard to realise that there are others who won't understand the meanings or customs readily.

I recall one friend arriving from Britain, whose culture and language are very similar, still having problems shopping - prices listed in Britain are after tax; prices listed in American shops are generally before tax. My friend would count out the money carefully to make sure he could afford the items, get to the cashier, and find he didn't have enough. Another friend from the then-Soviet Union was very perplexed at the number of choices for toothpaste - `I only wanted toothpaste!' she exclaimed, and instead was presented with an almost staggering array of marketing choices that Americans have learned to look past. Clothing sizes, shoe sizes and more are different in different countries.

This is a very practical guide, which includes everything from filing taxes to renting or purchasing a home to writing a resume - the one-page resume on page 330/331 would serve as a good model for anyone. Information on opening banking and other accounts is worthwhile for any reader, immigrant or `home-grown' person. The instructions are clear and useful, designed for applicability as well as comprehension.

The authors Vitaliy Demin and Olga Demin Lambert represent a family who went through the immigration and adjustment periods first-hand. When they arrived in America, they spoke no English, and thus had to learn to get by not only as foreigners, but as non-English speaking foreigners in a land that is not noted for being `user-friendly' toward those who do not speak English.

The book is written in Russian and in English on facing pages (note: those English speakers who want to expand or brush up on their Russian, or Russian speakers who want to do the same with their English, can use this text as a way of working with very practical words, sentence constructions and topics). While this book is written with the Russian immigrant in mind (evidenced by both the authors and the second language present), it in fact presents information that any immigrant would find useful and helpful. There is undoubtedly a market for dual-language or multi-language editions of this book.

Like many books of this sort, there are some pieces of information that go out-of-date quickly; perhaps a future edition of this book would come with a website for updates? The bulk of the advice, however, is sound and useful, and not likely to be outmoded any time soon.

Although my family has lived in the United States since before the American Revolution, I have always been intrigued by the special problems of immigrants to this country. When the size of immigration was larger, many immigrant groups combined to create their own institutions to help new immigrants adapt. With legal immigration now quite limited, resources for new immigrants are scarcer while the complexity of modern life in the U.S. is greater than ever before.

To fill that void, you can rely on the fine work that Vitaliy Demin and his daughter, Olga Demin Lambert, have provided in this extensive and exhaustive volume. They write from direct experience of having come to the United States in 1993 from Russia.

They have been very successful here. Mr. Demin is the Hardware Engineering Manger for Intelligent Controls, Inc. He has been with the company since 1994. Ms. Lambert has a B.A. in French and Psychology from Bates College and an M.A. in Language and Linguistics from the University of New Hampshire. She is now working on a doctorate in Language and Linguistics at the Harvard Graduate School of Education

The format of the book provides a page of text in American English on the left hand page while the same text appears in Russian on the right facing page. Since I do not read Russian, I can only comment on the English section.

Although this book is designed to be most helpful to Russian immigrants, I would be astonished if it was not just as valuable to immigrants from other countries as long as they possess enough language skill to read the English version.

The book deals with the official and the unofficial equally well. I was especially impressed with the sections on learning English (in the context of my many years of service in English as a Second Language programs provided for immigrants), rental housing, car buying, employment, education, welfare and retirement programs and medical care. There's also good advice on cultural issues like the preference for people to bathe and change clothes daily, use deodorant, brush and floss teeth twice daily and so forth.

This book is so good that I found myself learning things I didn't know in the parts on rental housing and car buying.

The material is easy to follow, with many tables of abbreviations, definitions, measurements and sources.

The section on learning English could have become the basis of a personal memoir that would have quite good sales just for its human interest value. The personal example of Mr. Demin in that section was very moving to me and set a helpful tone for the whole book.

I also tested the material for accuracy, and found surprisingly few errors. The weakest section is on U.S. income taxation. The material won't get you into trouble, but it also doesn't give you as much advice as you need. For example, the book insists you have to file by April 15. But some years, the date is later. Also, if you pay the taxes you owe by April 15 (or the appropriate later date that year), extensions for filing the return for no penalty may be available until as late as October 15. People who read this book should consider getting help in this area from a low-cost tax preparer.

The material in the education section on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) is dated. The test has been completely changed now, and you should get the latest information.

The book's biggest weakness is that the authors don't seem to be up-to-speed on the Internet as a way to deal with the issues they address. Although they reference the Internet frequently, many problems they describe here as requiring visits to see people (such as looking for housing, mortgage brokers and certain types of shopping) can actually be done faster and cheaper on the Internet. To supplement the book, find someone who uses the Internet frequently to help you learn how to find what you need on-line.

I feel guilty spending so much time on the book's weaknesses, for they are truly minuscule compared to the valuable information and the superb format. I compared the book to various omnibus resources on similar financial matters written by those for whom English is their native language and found this material to be more helpful and more accurate.

If you are a prospective immigrant, a new immigrant or an immigrant who is still having problems adjusting, this book is a must read for you.

If you know such a person, this book would make a thoughtful gift.

We all owe the authors a debt of gratitude for their excellent gift to immigrants!

Well written and organized book with great informative content. Very well suited for throughout reading or to be used as a reference for many of difficult situations encountered not only by immigrants but also for those who grew up in this country. I wish this book was available back when I was going through my growing pains. A lot of the questions I had to find answers for the hard way are covered in this very complete publication. To this day, after being in this country for over ten years, I still find new information that I use on daily basis. Highly recommend for anyone who wants to learn the ins and outs of the life in America.

"Welcome to America" is a highly recommended book for anyone with an immigrant wife from any culture, although the Russian speakers tend to get the best benefit from it (at least I haven't found an edition for other ethnic cultures - but then again, I haven't really looked all that hard).. The topics covered are those that would be of interest to anyone from a foreign culture, particularly since the authors cover only what is here - and there is no mention of what is over there (overseas).

I am a natural born and raised American and my wife is a recent Ukrainian immigrant with a teenage daughter. I wish I had known about this book more than a couple of years ago when they came here from overseas. I am not considered fluent in Russian (or Ukrainian), so explaining how things work (such as credit cards) has sometimes been a long and complex process. Even when my wife had acknowledged that she understood me, seeing the results of her use of the knowledge at something explained was usually very interesting. Sometimes the results are very good - other times, I had to re-evaluate my explanation and try to clarify.

One day, my wife brought me a reference for this book by Mr. Vitaly Demin and Olga Demin Lambert. Our life has definitely changed since the day it arrived, for they have not put together this book on the fly while adjusting to America, it habits, characteristics, and institutions. They have obviously researched each topic they have covered to a fine detail - and it shows in the content and layout of the book.

I particularly like the way it is laid out with English on the left side and Russian on the right. If my wife wants to point out something to me, she can easily show me where it is or tell me what page, and I can take a look at the text myself. Things she likes to show me have to do with previous explanations, sometimes along with "Why didn't you tell me this..."

I won't go into detail regarding the content of the book since it is already mentioned in some of the other reviews on this site. I'll just add my two cents and say that they are comprehensive and correct. This book should be in every immigrant's (and their spouse's) household.

Welcome To America, English-Russian Version is an immense and in-depth guide especially for American immigrants. Each two-page spread presents English information on one side and the same information translated into Russian on the other. Among the many topics covered this comprehensive volume are taxes, insurance, buying and selling a home, obtaining employment, learning English, medical care, credit and credit cards, social welfare and retirement programs, and much more. An extensively thorough yet down-to-earth practical and easy-to-follow instructional, and an absolute "must-have" for anyone braving the challenge of a new culture, legal system and way of life.

This is a really useful book. Even after five years in America, I found plenty of new and interesting information. The author Vitaliy Demin, an engineer, was able to coherently present a lot of material on many different topics that is usually inaccessible to a general audience.

After reading this book, I found that the seemingly unrelated pieces of knowledge that I acquired from other sources now formed a coherent whole. I also have found information on many subjects that I thought were only covered in specialized literature. As we all know, specialized literature usually contains many unnecessary details and sometimes leaves the reader confused and disappointed. Insufficient knowledge of English can be another obstacle to understanding such literature. This book, however, covers many topics in a clear and concise manner, which enables readers to quickly learn about the subject they are interested in. Besides, the current book market does not satisfy the majority of immigrant needs. This book, on the other hand, contains answers to specific questions most immigrants have. In addition, the excellent synchronous English translation has given me the opportunity to take a fresh look at my English skills and to improve them significantly.

The only thing I regret is that this book had not been written five years ago when I first arrived in America. It would saved me so much time and frustration and would have kept me from making many unnecessary mistakes. I think this book is a unique encyclopedia for not just Russians, but for all immigrants.

Olga Sapp www.russianwomenmagazine.com