Sweet Greeks: First-Generation Immigrant Confectioners in the Heartland

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https://exhibits.library.illinois.edu/s/ias/item/4466
Title
Sweet Greeks: First-Generation Immigrant Confectioners in the Heartland
Author/Editor(s)
Beck, Ann Flesor
Date
2020
Publisher
Urbana: University of Illinois Press
Call Number
Illinois History and Lincoln Collections/Funk 338.476641 B3881sw
Catalog Link
https://i-share-uiu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/01CARLI_UIU/gpjosq/alma99954820412005899
Description
Ann Flesor Beck, a third-generation Greek confectioner, co-owns Flesor's Candy Kitchen in Tuscola, Illinois, situated 20 miles south of Urbana-Champaign. Based on her dissertation completed at UIUC, "Sweet Greeks" narrates the journey of Gus Flesor, Beck’s grandfather, from Greece to Tuscola, where he learned the confectioner's trade and started a candy business in the early 20th century. The book also sheds light on the Midwest immigrant experience, encompassing aspects like chain migration, immigrant networking, the challenges immigrant entrepreneurs face, as well as how Greeks have shaped the candy industry in America.