Aegean Tales



by Pan Bouyoucas
translated by Sheila Fischman

ISBN 9781897151204 | 5.125" x 7.625" | TPB | $21
Categories:Fiction - Literary, Fiction - Short Stories, Translations

Purchase:Local Bookstores | mcnallyrobinson.com | archambault.ca | amazon.ca | chapters.indigo.ca

Share |

Synopsis

The Other, shortlisted for a 2001 Governor General’s Literary Award for Fiction, begins during the German occupation of Leros during World War II. Thomas is a young man guided by dreams: of marrying the girl he loves, of becoming a sailor, of seeing the world. That all changes when he takes a detour, and in so doing loses any chance of chasing his dreams. Trapped in the echoes of that seemingly innocuous choice, Thomas spends years resigned to living a life he never wanted — until, one day, he encounters the self he never had the chance to become.

Anna Why, winner of the Prix littéraire des collégiens in 2005 and an international bestseller, tells the tale of two nuns posted to a Byzantine fortress crowning the peak of Mount Pitiki. Sister Nicoletta is fifty-two, worldly, and generous with her kindness. Sister Veroniki is twenty-four, naive, and dogmatic in her beliefs. Their uneasy relationship, one rooted in faith and forged by solitude, is put to the test when a wandering deacon settles at their doorstep, adrift in despair and clinging to the wreckage of a lost love.

In these two novels, Pan Bouyoucas captures the essence of life on a weatherworn rock surrounded by the soft currents of time, while making brilliant use of tragedy’s great themes of love, fate, and guilt.
Preview

Read | Download

Reviews
"Set in the infinite beauty of a Greek island and the implacable cruelty of war, this philosophical tale offers no answers, only enigmas and spells. A very beautiful book."
- Monique Roy, Chatelaine

"What is magnificent about this novel is that Bououcas manages to present a man's whole destiny and even his potentialities in less than one hundred pages ... This short novel is a great book."
- Robert Chartrand, Le Devoir

"An enthralling, philosophical tale about desire and the torrents of love and faith one devours in a single sitting ... distinguished by its consummate art of narration, its exquisite humour and its dramatic intensity. Once again, Pan Bouyoucas reveals himself as an excellent storyteller."
- Suzanne Giguère, Le Devoir

"An exploration of the passions that govern us, full of charm and colourfulness."
- Florence Noiville, Le Monde
Other Titles By This Author