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The Island Paperback – July 24, 2007

by Victoria Hislop (Author)

570 customer reviews

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The Petrakis family lives in the small Greek seaside village of Plaka. Just off the coast is the tiny island of Spinalonga, where the nation's leper colony once was located—a place that has haunted four generations of Petrakis women. There's Eleni, ripped from her husband and two young daughters and sent to Spinalonga in 1939, and her daughters Maria, finding joy in the everyday as she dutifully cares for her father, and Anna, a wild child hungry for passion and a life anywhere but Plaka. And finally there's Alexis, Eleni's great-granddaughter, visiting modern-day Greece to unlock her family's past.

A richly enchanting novel of lives and loves unfolding against the backdrop of the Mediterranean during World War II, The Island is an enthralling story of dreams and desires, of secrets desperately hidden, and of leprosy's touch on an unforgettable family.

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Travel writer Hislop's unwieldy debut novel opens with 25-year-old Alexis leaving Britain for Crete, her mother Sofia's homeland, hoping to ferret out the secrets of Sofia's past and thereby get a handle on her own turbulent life. Sofia's friend Fortini tells Alexis of her grandmother Anna, and great-aunt Maria. Their mother (Alexis's great-grandmother) contracted leprosy in 1939 and went off to a leper colony on the nearby island of Spinalonga, leaving them with their father. Anna snags a wealthy husband, Andreas, but smolders for his renegade cousin, Manoli. When philanderer Manoli chooses Maria, Anna is furious. Conveniently, Maria also contracts leprosy and is exiled, allowing Anna to conduct an affair with Manoli. Meanwhile, Maria feels an attraction to her doctor, who may have similar feelings. Though the plot is satisfyingly twisty, the characters play one note apiece (Anna is prone to dramatic outrages, Maria is humble and kind, and their love interests are jealous and aggressive). Hislop's portrayal of leprosy—those afflicted and the evolving treatment—during the 1940s and 1950s is convincing, but readers may find the narrative's preoccupation with chronicling the minutiae of daily life tedious. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

When beloved schoolteacher Eleni is diagnosed with leprosy, she is exiled to the Greek island of Spinalonga. Left behind on Crete are her husband and two beautiful daughters, headstrong Anna and dutiful Maria. Years later, Eleni's great-granddaughter Alexis returns to Crete to find answers to her family's mysteries. Conveniently, a witness to her family history is still alive to tell her—and us—the dark story. The novel is a romantic page-turner, but a little shallow. For example, the Nazi occupation of Crete becomes a plot device to turn the boy next door into a hunk, and, after much tribulation, the good are rewarded and the bad punished. The novel, successful in Britain, will probably be a popular beach read and book club selection this summer. There's little to object to in this historical romp. Block, Marta Segal
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product details

Paperback: 480 pages
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; Ninth Printing edition (July 24, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0641964765
ISBN-13: 978-0061340321
ASIN: 0061340324
Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 1.1 x 8 inches
Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 570 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #66,670 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #471 in Books > Literature & Fiction > British & Irish > Historical
- #2261 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Women's Fiction > Domestic Life
- #2570 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Contemporary

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Papa Frank

Moving Mother-Daughter Discovery

December 2, 2015

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

This is the story of a young woman who yearns to know more about her mother's early life. For reasons unknown, the mother has been very secretive about her earlier life, but her daughter's trip to the town on Crete where she grew up causes the mother to send a letter to someone who knew her earlier life. When the daughter finds this friend from the past, the letter gives the friend permission to tell the mother's story. The setting then shifts to the past, as the mother's friend tells a detailed story about how a nearby island (thus the book's title) served as a leper colony from 1903-1957. As the story of the leper colony unfolds, the story of the young woman searching for her roots seems to evaporate, especially because the leper colony story (based on historical information) fills the majority of the pages in the book. But the 4-part structure of the book keeps the orginal story (presented in Part 1) in the back of the reader's mind and prepared for the return to that thread in Part 4, where all of her questions about her mother are answered. Touching and effective connections between the past life of the mother and current life of her daughter bring the story to a fulfilling and satisfying conclusion for both of them, as well as for the reader.

17 people found this helpful

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Josie-OnlineShopper

I really liked this book

July 22, 2015

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I really liked this book. Wasn't sure I was going to stick with it in the beginning, but then got going and didn't want to put it down. One of those great works of fiction that teaches you a thing or two about history--in this case the plight of lepers in Crete and the surrounding areas as recently as the 1900s. Interesting that soon after finishing this book, I unexpectedly came upon something else that mentioned how fierce the Cretan resistance was during WWII. This was not the focus of the book, just one small part of it, but it's interesting that you live your whole life not knowing anything about Crete during WWII, and then suddenly you learn something about it from two different sources. And it's even better that the information from both sources was consistent.

11 people found this helpful

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The Flea

A great book from a great author!

April 8, 2016

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I found out about this book thanks to one of the book websites subscriptions I get and the cover is what first piqued my interest. After reading the introduction, I ended up buying the book. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and plan to get some of her other works. I was able to follow along with no problems and even though I was shocked at one particular turn of events, this book was great! Excellent read :)

8 people found this helpful

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Angelicashops

I found it boring. It didn't grab me.

April 4, 2018

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I got this book based on the good reviews. I tried to start reading it multiple times and I would always put it away. It didnt grab me. I think part of the problem is the excessive descriptions and not enough of.a good story to keep me going. I gave up on it because life is too short to read books you don't enjoy.

9 people found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

Three and a half stars

April 24, 2013

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I read this book just before traveling to Crete for a vacation and wanted to get some background. For my purposes it was a good idea because it created a picture of the Cretan people in my mind that was born out in reality. The story of Spinalonga is very interesting in itself and the historical context for this part of its history is of paramount importance to the people of Crete. Their history has been replete with war and occupation and resistance all of which have contributed to their feeling of independence and pride of place. Many small villages have monuments to the resistance fighters during WWII and the atrocities visited on their families as a result. The island of Spinalonga is now a very popular tourist destination because of this book but also because of archeological interest in its buildings. There was even a very popular Greek TV series based on the book, called "To Nisi".

All that aside, the story is a bit melodramatic and the characters are not developed beyond romantic stereotypes. It was hard for me to imagine a woman, even in the 50's, turning down a chance for happiness after having suffered for years in isolation, in order to care for her able-bodied father. However, while on Crete I learned that family is everything there, even today, and I can see how in her day she might have made that choice. I wish the writing had been a little less formulaic and the characters a bit more human and accessible. Nevertheless, the story moves right along and it provides some very interesting insight to Cretan culture and a reminder of a disease that was so terrifying and misunderstood, but is now seldom heard of.

20 people found this helpful

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Penny Lade

Dramatic and absorbing.

February 17, 2016

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

" The Island" was the third Victoria Hislop book that I have read recently. I found this the most moving and enjoyable. Each book has used the same device of a character in present times learning about the past through the narration of another who has lived through and experienced the unfolding events. In some ways I think the book does not need this format as the story in itself is enough and it does seem a little contrived. Apart from that Victoria writes beautifully about the village of Plaka and the nearby island of Spinalonga , which housed a leper colony. Her book is well researched and the main character Maria was very sympathetic as was her father Giorgis. The story is very dramatic, with elements of love, betrayal, death, compassion and hope. I found the story absorbing and also learnt a lot about the disease of leprosy and the tragic impact it had on families in this particular era in Greece.

3 people found this helpful

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April 29, 2018

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

This book was informative. It was good to remember that this disease struck people from all walks of life. Sad to think how We scorn others in unfortunate situations and how it can/could have happened to anyone. As for Annie and Manilo they could did not have to do what they did, but both were selfish and unthoughtful of the ones they should have loved. My heart felt hurt for the husband and other family members. Anne treated all without love and it was all about her. The only other person she respected was Manilo and that was because he had the same characteristics she did.

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Most recent customer reviews

Finnen

That Spinalonga did happen many years ago.

As well as being historically true by personalizing the story with such interesting characters made the book a very gripping read.Read more

Published 17 hours ago

J. Horton-Holm

The Island

Actually written well—- however the story is about a wealthy family, and although they are rich, they they are not immune from the problems of daily life.Read more

Published 1 day ago

Winnie Drugsvold

Four Stars

I am reading this book now. Very informative and interesting,

Published 2 days ago

Karen Suisse

Love conquering all

A great historical read. I enjoyed the characters and the interaction between each one of them. As the pieces fell into place I knew It was right.

I loved the history the author had a way with words that made you feel as if you were there

Published 12 days ago

Vaun Healey

A book about forever

Wow, what a story. So much going on all the time The author did much research about Greece,their people , their customs, and storming emotions.Read more

Published 16 days ago

Denise Ducharme

That an island for lepers actually existed

I like the vivid description of the island

Published 22 days ago

Sandy

Four Stars

I enjoyed it though I thought that it would be more clinical than it was.

Published 22 days ago

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