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Lior Lampert, JFK senior, publishes book

Memoir details immigration journey

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The idea for “Little American Man,” a memoir by Lior Lampert, 17, of Merrick, came from a Lampert family Shabbat table conversation about a year ago, according to Lior and his mother, Einat.

“We were talking about how, 12 years ago, I couldn’t even speak English, and now I’m going to college,” Lior said.

After reflecting on growing up as an immigrant in America, Lior decided to put his thoughts to paper about his journey from Israel to Bellmore-Merrick. He wrote in his free time, focusing on his family, culture shock, language difficulties and growing pains.

The project's result was "Little American Man,” a self-published short memoir with English and Hebrew characters and the American and Israeli flags on the front cover and Lior’s picture on the back cover. The book came out in July and is available at amazon.com.

In 2002, when he was nearly 5, Lior moved with his parents and two brothers from Nes-Ziona, Israel to Bellmore. Two years later the family moved into a new house in south Merrick.

The move accommodated Lior’s father, whose work in international business often took him to the U.S., Einat said. But she also admitted that she wanted to give her children a life away from the recurring acts of terrorism that have been a part of life in Israel.

Lior’s life now resembles that of a typical Merrick teenager. He will begin his senior year at Kennedy in the fall, and he is juggling the college application process. He has an after-school job at a mechanical warehouse, and his favorite activity is playing basketball with friends. But with grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins still in Israel, fear of war and bombing remains a part of the Lamperts’ lives.

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