From Publishers Weekly
Stone moved to Greece more than 20 years ago to work on a novel and, upon its completion, found himself unable to leave the beautiful country. In this memoir, he colorfully recollects his life there, particularly one summer when he runs a restaurant on the island of Patmos. The reading complete with appropriate translations of some Greek phrases and expressions adequately conveys the experiences of an American who thinks of himself as a native but is still an outsider, as he learns when a "friend" cheats him out of a substantial sum of money. Part autobiography and part travelogue, this audiobook should appeal to listeners who've spent time in Greece; Stone's descriptions of the landscape and the people will be recognizable to those already familiar with the country. The author's humility in accepting some of the more difficult aspects of his stay the financial struggles and the physical labor, among them seems genuine. However, perhaps because of the length, this audio grows somewhat tiresome. Listeners may grow weary of Stone's observations about tourists (after all, he was once one) and his deprecating comments about the Greek people; James's reading of these sentiments is at times smug.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Patmos, the small Greek island where St. John lived and wrote, is the setting of this brief but charming autobiographical travelog with recipes. Stone (Greece: An Illustrated History) is in love with Patmos, most of the people who live there, and especially his French-born wife, Danielle, whom he met and married there. One summer, when asked to take over a friend's restaurant at the height of the summer tourist season, Stone was able to turn his cooking avocation into a real job. In this bittersweet memoir, he recounts the reality of working from early in the morning to late at night, with almost no time for friends and family which ultimately forced him to reconsider the allure of his dream island and start thinking about how to live his life in the future. Stone also relates the seesawing friendship between himself and the taverna owner, an old friend who cheated him of thousands of dollars. Although written in the genre of Peter Mayle and Frances Mayes, this down-to-earth travelog certainly does not present a vacation world viewed through rose-colored glasses. Recommended for larger travel as well as cooking collections. Olga B. Wise, Compaq Computer Corp., Austin, TX
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.
