This book was an emotional roller-coaster for me. Not knowing anything about the history of Greece, I was shocked to learn of their struggle with Communism and immediately was reminded again how lucky I am to have been born in America. Written by her son, Nicholas, this is the true story of Eleni Gatzoyiannis, a brave, peasant woman, who with thousands of others, was caught up in the civil war being fought in the hilly region of Mourgana, Greece, between 1939 and 1949. While the world was primarily focused on Hitler's horrific attempt to take over the world and exterminate the Jews, this struggle, fought largely within Greece's borders by the communist guerrillas (Democratic Army of Greece), was as ruthless and terrifying as anything taking place around the rest of the world. Written after years of research and interviews, Nicholas Gage describes in unrelenting detail the DAG's gruesome treatment of their own people, who suffered everything from starvation, torture, having their children conscripted into the army or deported, and finally execution. The descriptions of how these people suffered are not easy to read, but the message is clear. There is no limit to the horrors that men can inflict on innocents when given a war to justify their actions. Very few of these monsters are ever held accountable for their actions when the dust settles. I applaud Mr. Gage for calling out his mother's murderers. May you rest in peace, Eleni. ( )

Ein Frauenschicksal im Bürgerkrieg

Die Lebensgeschichte einer griechischen Mutter, die sich für ihre Kinder opferte. Eine Geschichte von Liebe und Haß, vom Überleben, von Güte und Rache.

Totdat de II° WO en daarna de rebellie en de guerrilla's (communisten) tegen het regeringsleger Eleni Gatzoyiannus haar kinderen - haar dierbaarste bezit - bedreigden was Eleni een gewone boerenvrouw geweest, met de angsten, de vooroordelen en het bijgeloof die haar opvoeding in die primitieve wereld (hoog in de bergen in Noord-Griekenland, dicht bij Albanië) waarin zij leefde, haar ingeprent had. Maar toen zij onder een vreselijke druk kwam te staan en haar gezin dreigde te worden vernietigd vond ze het inzicht dat haar vertelde wat haar te doen stond en de kracht om het ook te volbrengen.
Prachtige sterke vrouw. Respect. ( )

A son's tribute to his mother and the search for her killer with riveting flashbacks to the Greek Civil War of 1948. ( )

This is a long book, nearly 700 pages but it tells an epic story of a family and a village during a decade of war, 1938-1949. It is a detailed and sad tale which was engrossing. I did find it hard to keep track of all of the different people in the book, particularly as it takes place in Greece and the people often have long Greek names. The Author writes that he interviewed 400 people for this book, that gives you some idea of how involved the story can get. It would have helped to have a list of names to help keep track of them. The book is easy to read with clear writing throughout. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in Greece during this period, it's information on the Civil War is hard to find. But it is the effects of the wars on the Authors family that makes this book worth the read. Even though you know how it all ends right from the beginning of the book, you keep hoping that things will work out. It is quite remarkable for a book to do that.

As an aside while reading the book I found a copy of the movie. ( )