The Summer of My Greek Taverna - (Memoir) by Tom Stone (Paperback)

About the Book

In this "feast for all senses" ("Publishers Weekly"), Stone serves up a charming and finely observed account of life and love--for a place, a woman, and a dream--on a small Greek island. 2 maps.

Book Synopsis

The story of a man in love with a place, a woman, and a dream.
Tom Stone went to Greece one summer to write a novel -- and stayed twenty-two years. On Patmos, he fell in love with Danielle, a beautiful French painter. His novel completed and sold, he decided to stay a little longer.
Seven idyllic years later, they left Patmos for Crete. When a Patmian friend Theológos called and offered him a summer partnership in his beach tavérna, The Beautiful Helen, Stone jumped at the chance -- much to the dismay of his wife, who cautioned him not to forget the old adage about Greeks bearing gifts.
Her warning was well-founded: when back on Patmos, Stone quickly discovered that he was no longer a friend or patron but a competitor. He learned hard lessons about the Greeks' skill at bargaining and business while reluctantly coming to the realization that Theológos's offer of a partnership was indeed a Trojan horse.
Featuring Stone's recipes, including his own Chicken Retsina and the ultimate moussaka, The Summer of My Greek Tavérna is as much a love story as it is the grand, humorous, and sometimes bittersweet adventures of an American pursuing his dreams in a foreign land, a modern-day innocent abroad.

Review Quotes

The New York Times Book Review His infatuation with the place (whether "fueled by an excess of retsina" or not) is infectious.

Time The summer's best travel writing...like Kitchen Confidential with ouzo.

About the Author

Tom Stone was a theatrical stage manager and assistant director for 10 years before moving his family to Greece where he managed his own restaurant, Ee Oraya Eleni (The Beautiful Helen). After twenty-two years of paradise and heartache on the Greek isles, he moved to London, then to Los Angeles where he now is assisting his wife in the exhibition of her art work. He has written short stories and several books, and currently has three screenplays under option. He lives in Southern California.