Rural Life in Northern Greece Reading List from Sam Demas September 9 – 21, 2005 A number of the best readings for this trip are either out-of-print or not easily available in the U.S. I will place reading of selected chapters from several sources “on e-reserves” (within the limits of fair use on copyright) for the group to read online or print out. Of course you may choose to order the books with excerpts on e-reserves. This reading list will be augmented with additional optional readings over the coming months. 1. One book (plus parts of another) everyone should read: Eleni: A Savage War, A Mother’s Love, and A Son’s Revenge: A Personal Story, by Nicholas Gage, 1983, Random House, N.Y. While somewhat controversial for his strong stance on the still-sensitive left/right divide of the Greek Civil war, journalist Gage provides good descriptions of village life in a moving story and excellent read. Supplemented with chapters from the following source, one will get a very good sense of rural life in Epiros in the 1940’s and 50’s, which is essential to understanding contemporary life. Film version available. Honor, Family and Patronage: A Study of Institutions and Moral Values in a Greek Mountain Community, by J.K. Campbell, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1967. Based on 10 years of research in the Zagoria region, this is the classic ethnography of rural Greek life and a key source for understanding “the Greek mentality”. While the rural life Campbell describes has been disappearing and changing over the past 50 years, this book remains an essential study of village life and the moral values that still inform much of the character of rural Greece. While fairly easily available, this book is out-of print and I will place selected chapters on e- reserves. 2. Good background: *For a good history of Greece, Clogg, Richard A Concise History of Greece, Cambridge University Press, 2nd edition, 2002. *For mythology, I enjoy Mary Renault’s well-written fictional accounts of Greek mythology in The King Must Die, The Last of the Wine, and The Masks of Apollo. *Greek natural history, I will place on e-reserves two chapters from Travellers’ Nature Guides: Greece by Bob Gibbons, Oxford University Press, 2003. I will also place on e-reserves selections from some World Wildlife Fund publications on the culture and ecology of the Zagoria region. *General travel guide, The Rough Guide to Greece provides excellent essays on history, Greek minorities, Archaeology, Mythology, Wildlife, Music and Books and is a good investment. 3. Optional readings you may enjoy: *For insights into Greek cuisine and good recipes, I recommend books by Diane Kochilas, including her masterful The Glorious Food of Greece (2002, Wm. Morrow, 2002), The Food and Wine of Greece (St. Martin’s Press, N.Y., 1990), and The Greek Vegetarian: More Than 100 Recipes Inspired by the Traditional Dishes and Flavors of Greece, St. Martin’s Press, N.Y., 1996). More suggestions coming… .