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The Summer of My Greek Taverna
 
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The Summer of My Greek Taverna [Audio Cassette]

Tom Stone (Author), Lloyd James (Narrator)
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)

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Paperback CDN $17.52   -- --
Audio, CD --   -- --
Audio, Cassette, August 2002 --   -- --

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Product Description

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.

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. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews

18 Reviews
5 star:
 (12)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:
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2 star:
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1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.3 out of 5 stars (18 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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2.0 out of 5 stars Very light Fare, Sep 3 2009
By 
This review is from: The Summer of My Greek Taverna: A Memoir (Paperback)
I found this book very unsatisfying. The author seems to be a man of little sophistication or world experience. It struck me as strange that he would be able to afford a subscription to Gourmet Magazine for years while apparently living on the edge of starvation in his tutoring job.Having spent many wonderful summers eating in tavernas on Greek Islands I found most of his recipes ridiculous and uninventive.His characters were very limited and there seemed to be no reason to read the book or recommend it to anyone else.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Summer of my Greek Taverna, Feb 23 2003
By 
D. G. Welch "DW" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: The Summer of My Greek Taverna: A Memoir (Hardcover)
Very enjoyable ! Tom Stone is a breath of fresh air in the travel writing world. There is a sensual undercurrent in his writing! Loved this book!
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4.0 out of 5 stars Enthusiastic about Patmos, Dec 17 2002
By 
Alekos (Cancun, Quintana Roo Mexico) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Summer of My Greek Taverna: A Memoir (Hardcover)
Since I have spent a lot of time on the Island of Patmos, I was glad to learn that this book had been published and I ordered it immediately. I have a few negative observations to make about the book, so I'd better start out with the positive stuff. The book is a pleasant read. In general the author captures the flavor and beauty of the island and its inhabitants. It is also a fast read. But my own experience on the island makes me believe that its people are rather un-Greek in the sense that they are kinda sneaky. They are also generally unhappy people, quite grim. This may be caused by being dominated by the church. One young Patmian I met said he wanted to go away and live in Athens because he couldn't stand the idea of living his whole life in a cemetery. Too much religion makes Demitrios a dull boy.

Now, the book is about how an American gets duped by a Patmian when he agrees to become his partner in a beachside restaurant. This isn't really enough of a story to make a whole book, but as it turns out, it is rather successful because the author has flair and a knack for characterization that he uses effectively.

There may be a problem in the possiblility that readers will get the notion that all Greeks behave in the same underhanded way as the author's alleged partner. They do not. Patmians are a special kind of Greek, which may have something to do with the island's being dominated by the monastery up on the hill. The abbot of the monastery actually functions as the local bishop, and he isn't even a bishop. Most of the monks at the monastery are a pretty sour lot, too. The local priests, on the other hand, are a nice bunch of people who try to make outsiders feel welcome even in church. Strange, isn't it?

The author is also the narrator, and little attempt is made to separate the two. This means there is little literary distance in the work...the author gives the impression of writing in the white heat of his emotional letdown when the whole situation at the restaurant comes to a head and he has to confront his thieving partner. The other characters are portrayed quite well, even the minor ones.

Summing up, this is an interesting story, but is only a story, even though it is probably based on real life experience. But there of not enough of it for a full length book.

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