The Summer of My Greek Taverna. A Memoir

By Tom Stone

Simon and Schuster International
272 pages
ISBN-13:978-0-7432-45771-9 (Pbk)

 Tom Stone went to Greece to write a novel and stayed for 22 years. In this book he tells of his experiences on Patmos, the tiny Greek island famed for St John’s Book of Revelations, and where he fell in love with his wife, a French artist, Danielle. Trying to raise a family was not easy there, so they went to Crete, but the dream of returning was always with him. He is given the chance to go into partnership in a taverna on a beach on Patmos, which he jumps at, ignoring his wife’s warning about Greeks bearing gifts. The book is very easy to read despite jumping back and forward in time, and is a sometimes bittersweet tale which is told very honestly. Even after all the blood, sweat and tears in the taverna, Tom Stone never loses his love for Greece and especially Patmos. The book also has recipes, giving some of the author’s own original ideas.