Blue Skies and Black Olives: A Survivor's Tale of Housebuilding and Peacock Chasing in Greece

by John Humphrys

Radio 4 Today presenter and national treasure John Humphrys' funny and engaging memoir of building a home in Greece with his son Christopher.

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction, Greece, Humor

288 pages, Hardcover

First published September 10, 2009

About the author

Desmond John Humphrys is a Welsh author, journalist and presenter of radio and television, who has won many national broadcasting awards. From 1981 to 1987 he was the main presenter for the Nine O'Clock News, the flagship BBC news television programme, and since 1987 he has been a presenter on the award-winning BBC Radio 4 programme, Today. He is also currently the host of the popular BBC Two television quiz show Mastermind.

John Humphrys has written several books, including Lost for Words, in which he criticizes what he sees as the widespread misuse of the English language, plus 'Devil's Advocate', 'Beyond Words', 'The Great Food Gamble' and 'In God We Doubt: Confessions Of A Failed Atheist'. Humphrys is an agnostic, but has a curiosity to test his agnosticism and challenge established religions to see if they can restore his childhood belief in God. In 2006, he presented a BBC Radio 4 programme, titled "Humphrys in Search of God" where he spoke to leading British authorities on Christianity, Judaism and Islam to try and restore his faith.

Humphrys is a columnist for the Daily Mail.

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

Greece was a country that John Humphrys was beginning to fall in love with as he visited his son Christopher and his family there regularly. One time whilst visiting he had the mad idea of buying a property there. They kept looking for the ideal place, and one day he found it; in the Peloponnese was a site with a stunning view over the Aegean. The only problem was it had a semi derelict cottage and the rest was a building site with the foundations of a villa. But surely that wasn’t a big problem as his Greek speaking son could project manage it while John was busy in the UK. What could possibly go wrong?

Quite a lot actually...

Over the next four years Humphrys' would have plenty of time to regret his decision. Christopher dealt with the petty bureaucrats, maddening tradesmen, exasperating builders whilst John dug deeper and deeper into his pocket to make sure that his dream got built.

Both father and son tell the story of how everything as John’s dream slowly is constructed. They recount the mini stories and anecdotes of the dealings with neighbours, builders and life in general in this intriguing country, from harvesting their first olives to keeping the concrete cool in the height of summer. There are several very funny moments too, making this a delight to read. It has a self depreciating style too, similar to A Year in Provence, the classic book by Mayle, and was a delight to read.

[Vicky · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was predisposed to like this, since i'm a philhellene who lived in Greece for a while. That said when I started it, I hated it! To start with I felt like something of a groupie reading a book by John Humphrys, and I hated the change of voice between John and Christopher, which felt like a clunky marketing way of getting famous father's name of a book written by obscure son. Getting past this, I was totally immersed in the catalogue of incidents encountered as JH tried to get his dream house built in the Peloponnese. It was truly funny, even after reading donzens of such Brits abroad stories, and the observations of cultural differences between greeks and english were non-patronizing to either group. Definintely a good summer read, especially if you're heading off to Greece.

[Filip · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really funny and witty story, containing a number of amusing snippets of how two Brits tried to build a house in Greece. It chronicles their struggle with the beaurocracy, contractors, neighbours and so on, written in an easy and funny way, while still showing a bit of that culture. I knew a bit how life is in Greece, but this really drives the point home. A nice place to visit, I'm sure, but I wouldn't like to live there.

[Lucy J Jeynes · Rating 2 out of 5]

For 50 weeks of the year I find books like this unutterably loathsome. Posh people buy a little place to do up in Provence or Tuscany or in this case the Pelopponese, and face trials and tribulations whilst laughing in a patronising way at the quaint locals and their funny customs. The purpose of reading this book is to remind me, while I'm here exercising my fantasy of buying a little place to do up, that it would be a REALLY BAD IDEA. Especially if I'm hankering for a quiet life of writing, walking and quaint neighbours with their funny customs, and find instead I still awake to a haranguing from John Humphrys.

[Ver · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really interesting and funny book as long as you do not consider moving to Greece. The beaurocracy and people's attitude seems like it is a third world country, not European Union. Good for a holiday, but not as a permanent place for someone used to a high standard of service.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really took me back to the time I spent in Greece. The insight into the Greek psyche is spot -on, ranging from humourous, endearing to sheer frustrating. Loved this book for all the trials and tribulations John and his son encountered in building their villa. The peacock episode had me laughing out loud and the next moment the book would take you to the depths of despair.

[Mandy Radley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up as I remember John Humphrys reading the news when I used to live in the UK and thought it might be interesting. I was right, hilarious in parts, especially the peacock, but honestly and I don't want to offend anyone, why would you build a house in Greece when you are faced with such bureaucracy. I now understand why the country is in such a mess.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

not normally a fan of john humphrys, this book had me warming to him. its funny and now that i live in greece i can sympathise with the many problems he had in completing the building of his house. may he and his family enjoy many years in their lovely house

[Ania · Rating 2 out of 5]

Książka wpisuje się, w silny kilka lat temu, trend, w którym obcokrajowcy najczęściej Amerykanie lub Anglicy, przyjeżdżali na urlop lub osiedlali się na stałe, w miejscu, o którym wcześniej w ogóle nie mieli pojęcia, że istnieje, ale które tak ich zauroczyło, krajobrazem, widokiem ze wzgórza itp, że jak już się zasiedzieli, względnie skończył się ich urlop - postanowili opisać swoje wrażenia, a potem je wydać w formie najczęściej, książki. Te urokliwie opowiastki pochodziły najczęściej z Włoch lub wiejskich regionów Francji. W tym wypadku mamy opowieść z Grecji.
Bohaterowie pod wpływem widoku na zatokę, postanowili wybudować dom na wzgórzu..., a kiedy już stanął opisać swoje wrażenia.
Na początku było miło, potem zrobiło się przewidywalnie, a na końcu wiało nudą. Tak można streścić fabułę. Na każdej stronie podkreślano, że Grecy to biurokraci i bałaganiarze, w każdej dziedzinie życia. Ok, ale ile można o tym czytać. Udowadnianie tych prawd stało się sensem tej książki. Kiedy Autorzy się zmęczyli, albo doszli do wniosku, że przesadzili, wrzucali do treści jakiś opis zapierającego dech w piersiach widoku, krajobrazu, tudzież wąwozu, po czym odprężeni, wracali do meritum. To tak jakby w książce o Polakach na każdej stronie czytać jacy to leniwi alkoholicy, ale za to w górach widoki piękne, a nad morzem zachody słońca niezapomniane i dlatego warto osiedlić się w Polsce. Jak dla mnie trochę słaba motywacja.
Poza tym, moim zdaniem, wiele kłopotów głównych bohaterów wynikało z ich błędnego myślenia, że wszędzie na świecie wszystko działa tak jak w Wielkiej Brytanii. Co, jak powszechnie wiadomo jest założeniem nieprawdziwym. Druga sprawa uważam, że przeciętny turysta czy początkujący mieszkaniec Peloponezu, z niektórymi opisanymi w książce sytuacjami nigdy się nie spotka, gdyż nie po każdym greckim sadzie chodzą pijane pawie i nie każdy były właściciel gruntu przez kilka lat obmyśla zemstę na swoim byłym sąsiedzie i nagle w akcie desperacji postanawia na nie swoim już gruncie, postawić betonową zaporę w poprzek drogi dla utrudnienia życia nielubianemu, podkreślam ponownie, byłemu sąsiadowi. Moim zdaniem kilka sytuacji zostało celowo podkoloryzowanych na potrzeby fabuły, co trąci fałszem i brakiem wiarygodności.
Podsumowując książka bardzo przeciętna, która nie oddaliła, ani nie przyspieszyła mojej decyzji o wyjeździe do Grecji.

[R.L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

English review below the Greek one...

Συνηθισμένη ιστορία για βιβλία του είδους. Κάποιος αποφασίζει να χτίσει ένα σπίτι σε ξένη χώρα βλέποντας τον κόσμο μέσα από τα ωραία ροζ γυαλιά του και μετά πέφτει από τα σύννεφα με τις δυσκολίες που προκύπτουν. Δυσκολία στην συνεννόηση σε μία ξένη γλώσσα, γραφειοκρατεία, διαφορετικά ήθη και έθιμα, μπλεξίματα με εργολάβους, υδραυλικούς, γειτόνους και πολεοδόμους, σεισμοί, λοιποί και καταποντισμοί, κάποιοι φιλικοί αλλά περίεργοι γείτονες, αργοπορία και τα σχέδια έξω από το παράθυρο, αλλά τελικά τέλος καλό, όλα καλά. Όχι κάτι ιδιαίτερα πρωτότυπο, αλλά επαρκές για χαλαρό ανάγνωσμα ένα δυο απογεύματα, ιδίως όταν αναφέρεται στην χώρα καταγωγής σου...

From the moment I read the blurb on the back cover I knew what this book was all about and I was sure it will be quite predictable. Still, I like to read this kind of books every now and then, even more so when the country concerned is my own homeland. Unless someone is completely naive or has never read anything similar, I don't think there is anything surprising or revealing or original here and while it wasn't a bad read, it wasn't anything special or original. A fine read to keep you occupied an afternoon or two.

[William Murphy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thoroughly tedious exercise in a well known name attaching itself to cobbled together holiday paperbook.
This book never rises above the ground works of the Humphrey's Greek cottage and well before midway had this reader (who was re-reading Henry Miller's Colossus of Maroussi among others) regretting ever purchasing it.
As another review has pointed out, it isn't made clear at the start or on the cover this is a literary collaboration between father and son, as was the rebuild of the property, and the confusion continues right to the tedious end.
Is there no end to these tales of the British mania for doing up houses abroad, with a rentier's focus on investment, returns and values, all in my view, with a deplorable rat race mentality injected into what was once and still could be paradise, or simply put, "heaven"?
John Humphrys may have been a fine and serious interviewer and presenter on the radio but exercises like this worthless book are a betrayal of those talents.
Don't bother.

[Alison · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't love this one. Perhaps if I grew up hearing John Humphrys voice on the radio in the UK, I would have enjoyed this story more- being able to see a more "real" side to him. While there were humorous aspects of life in Greece which Humphrys describes quite accurately that I think rings true for expats living in Greece, I thought the story a bit boring. The basic storyline is an expat who builds a house in the Peloponnese.

[Sandra Docherty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

Loved this fraught saga of John Humphrey’s and his son Christopher’s purchase of a wreck of a house in Greece and the ups and downs when trying to build a new one. The problems they faced with bureaucracy, builders, weather etc., makes great reading also a lesson for anyone thinking of going down the same route!
I look forward to more books by John Humphreys.

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

A light bit of reading. My husband didn’t like the change of voice between John and Christopher, but I thought they were quite an amusing double act. Nothing deep or meaningful going on here, just light entertainment.

[Deborah Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining read

This is an entertaining light read that’ll probably put you off building a house in Greece - or even trying to live there. Well-written with humour and warmth, it offers a revealing insight into how other countries and cultures deal with building a house.

[Stelios Avramidis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked the book, love books where expats are describing life in Greece. It paints a very accurate picture with both the good and the bad bits. I don't get reviews that describe the book as patronising there is clearly love for Greece in this book

[Emily Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witty and interesting read. I have been to the Peloponnese so I could envisage some of the places described/mentioned in the book. I especially like that it is written in the two voices of John and his son Christopher.

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

it was the true story of a man and his son encountering endless problems building a house in Greece.

[Judy Cole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since I have been to Greece, I recommend this book. It is entertaining with laugh aloud moments and it imparts information about the culture that you never knew. Worth reading!

[Shelly Frick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, easy read while in Greece on holiday!

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listened to the audio. Now would like to read it too

[Robert Hinder · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny tales in parts


Gives a good Insight into the problems dealing with Greek Authorities and workforce and in parts the stories are funny.

[Andrew McClarnon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jaunty ramblings around the challenges and satisfactions of building a house in Greece. Great fun trying to find it on Google Earth.

[James Browne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good start

The book began in an engaging way but then became rather dull following a well trodden path of difficulty padded out with some irrelevant anecdotes.
Overall a disappointment

[Helen Aasaleht · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful and funny light reading.

[Phaedra Casey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did enjoy this book, but it is very focussed on the process of building the house, and very little about actually enjoying it afterwards.

[Pamela Hamilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this for a second time and enjoyed it again.

[Mirny · Rating 5 out of 5]

A hilarious book. Laughed out loud.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved Henry the Peacock 🦚

[Robyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny. Laughed so much in the baptism
Scene I had to put the book down and control
myself
Reading this as travelling through the Peloponnese as I picked it up free in the library in Nafplio