encounter with the future - Paperback

by Anika Pavel (Author)

"A natural storyteller and shrewd observer." - Publishers Weekly

Imagine what would happen if an 18-year-old girl landed across the Iron Curtain for the

first time...alone.

What if that girl went from being a nanny, to a fashion model, to a Playboy Bunny, to an

actress. What if her journey took her from London to Hong Kong, and on to the USA in a

full and wonderful life encompassing rock 'n' roll, new business ventures, a family and

everything in between?

It may sound too incredible to be true, but Anika Pavel lived it all-and so much

more.

Anika was born Jarmila Kocvarova in communist Czechoslovakia. She bravely ventured

across the Iron Curtain to England for what was intended to be a one-year stay, but she

never could have guessed what the world had in store for her.

As her life in London unfolds, she goes from sleeping in phone booths to becoming a

Bond girl in the swinging 60s.

Encounter with the Future tells the stories of Anika's life and the people she has shared

it with. In a series of essays, some intimate and small, some touching upon the major

political and social moments of the twentieth century, Pavel takes us on an

unforgettable journey.

Along the way, you'll find the history of a tiny country and its people, lessons learned,

and family remembered.

Praise for Encounter with the Future:

"The stories in this collection bring vividly to life a time, a place, a family, and a unique

perspective. The reader learns about Communist Czechoslovakia and London in the

swinging 60s-not just historical events and figures, but the texture of daily life. Anika

Pavel tells us stories that are at turns funny and poignant, sometimes at the same time,

and always memorable."

- Emma Hamilton, Professor of Literature

"Pavel manages, from her present and sophisticated vantage, to evoke the innocence of youth."

-- Nicholas Delbanco, author of Why Writing Matters

"Steeped in compassion and grace."

-- Mark Hummel, author of Man, Underground