In the making of this book, authors from the United States and Denmark have joined forces in describing many different aspects of both emigration and assimilation.

"In letters to their homeland, Danes who emigrated to North America from 1842 to 1946 here give vivid, personal impressions of how they began life anew, far from the familiar surroundings of home. Passages selected by the authors from among more than a thousand emigrant letters provide a unique glimpse of life on the American prairie as well as on Chicago's notorious South Side. The narratives are presented in a series of themes, ranging from the crossing of the Atlantic to an inside look at the United States. Although few regretted the decision to emigrate, nearly all suffered pangs of homesickness, and many attempted to imbue their children with a sense of "Danishness." These Danes of the past come alive as they describe both successes and failures in their own words. It is the hope of the Danes Worldwide Archives that "A New Life" will help to strengthen the historical identity of Danish-Americans"--Back cover.