New Book Describes Athens Before the Bubble Burst

In his book Athens – The Truth: Searching for Manos, Just Before the Bubble Burst, New Zealand author David Cade describes his time in the city during the summer of 2009 as startling reports emerged of the Greek debt crisis.

“The book is a thought-provoking, well-paced account of 16 days spent wandering Greece’s capital,” reviewer Alexander Clapp writes.

“Cade is insightful when reading ethnographically into today’s Greeks. He hones in on apparent contradictions in the Hellenic national character. Why are Greeks – who are otherwise so proudly communal – some of the world’s most litigious people?

“According to his analysis, Greek society is essentially Middle Eastern in nature. The country’s enthrallment to Western fashions is a superficial attempt to backdoor its way into a European identity.

“‘The Greeks are essentially a Levantine people and to become truly “European” would necessitate a massive alternation of mind-set and nature, not to mention climate,’ Cade says.”

Original article by Alexander Clapp, Ekathimerini.com, February 22, 2014.