What do you think?
Rate this book
Greece: A Literary Guide for Travellers
“If in the library of your house you do not have the works of the ancient Greek writers then you have a house with no light.”
- George Bernard Shaw Greece may be a small, rugged, sea-girt country, but it has the longest written history in Europe. Her myths and legends, so deeply embedded in Western consciousness, and her sublime landscapes, so infused with history, have been muse for writers, artists and travelers for millennia. This remarkable book takes the literary-minded traveler – whether a literal or armchair tourist – on a vivid and illuminating journey through Greece, “the principle source of Western culture and the origin of much of its literature, art, science, and philosophy.” The focus is on the writers who’ve visited or lived on the island in recent centuries – “most of our companions are British and American” the author notes – but in the background and woven throughout the book are the great poets, philosophers, gods, and goddesses of Greek culture and history. Organized by regions of the island, from Athens to the scattered islands of the Ionian and Aegean seas, this guide is filled with the words of literary titans that echo through the from Homer and Plato to Byron, Flaubert and Twain; Henry Miller to John Fowles; the Durrells to Patrick Leigh Fermor and Cavafy, Kazantzakis and Seferis. The book is also filled with writers who’ve worked in Greece in more recent times, including their years under Ottoman rule, and during events throughout the 20th Century. Extensive text features include a map of the islands, an Author Profiles section with short bios of the writers and their works, a Chronology of Greece’s cultural and political history, a bibliography for further reading, and an index for handy reference.
- George Bernard Shaw Greece may be a small, rugged, sea-girt country, but it has the longest written history in Europe. Her myths and legends, so deeply embedded in Western consciousness, and her sublime landscapes, so infused with history, have been muse for writers, artists and travelers for millennia. This remarkable book takes the literary-minded traveler – whether a literal or armchair tourist – on a vivid and illuminating journey through Greece, “the principle source of Western culture and the origin of much of its literature, art, science, and philosophy.” The focus is on the writers who’ve visited or lived on the island in recent centuries – “most of our companions are British and American” the author notes – but in the background and woven throughout the book are the great poets, philosophers, gods, and goddesses of Greek culture and history. Organized by regions of the island, from Athens to the scattered islands of the Ionian and Aegean seas, this guide is filled with the words of literary titans that echo through the from Homer and Plato to Byron, Flaubert and Twain; Henry Miller to John Fowles; the Durrells to Patrick Leigh Fermor and Cavafy, Kazantzakis and Seferis. The book is also filled with writers who’ve worked in Greece in more recent times, including their years under Ottoman rule, and during events throughout the 20th Century. Extensive text features include a map of the islands, an Author Profiles section with short bios of the writers and their works, a Chronology of Greece’s cultural and political history, a bibliography for further reading, and an index for handy reference.
288 pages, Hardcover
Published November 28, 2017
4 people are currently reading
15 people want to read
About the author
Michael Carroll
4 books4 followersLibrarian Note:
There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Michael Carroll was born in England in 1935. He was educated at Harrow and Cambridge but spent much of his early life in India.
There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Michael Carroll was born in England in 1935. He was educated at Harrow and Cambridge but spent much of his early life in India.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
June 17, 2023
For wonky Greek classicists and who isn't? You'll find you are one too when you crack into this nice volume of musings on how many writers have been inspired by this most literary of countries. Some is familiar in a classroom sort of way when you remember lessons that have seeped into your knowing deeper than you could ever realize, others are a revelation. All of them remind us of how much readers, writers, thinkers owe Greece.
Displaying 1 of 1 review