I Have to Get It Off My Chest

Post-Soviet Latvia in the 1990s was a place of political upheaval and societal turmoil. Such is the setting for I Have to Get It Off My Chest – I Have to Tell My Truth; the story of Lolita, a young woman who faces her own personal challenges stemming from a husband with addiction problems and the economic hardships that were widespread across Eastern Europe at the time.


Lolita eventually chooses to move abroad and start a new life. But in a foreign country, away from her home and everything familiar to her, she faces new and different obstacles. She must also deal with the additional challenges of bringing up a child with special needs. Eventually Lolita does succeed in creating a good life for herself and comes to enjoy the happiness she has always sought for herself and her children.


I Have to Get It Off My Chest – I Have to Tell My Truth  is a compelling work that’s based on author Inguna Brazil’s own experiences as a Latvian woman. While the book depicts events from her personal history, it’s a story that would undoubtedly be familiar to many Latvian women who faced similar adversities following the demise of Soviet controlled Eastern Europe.