Lepra offers free educational resources for “Maria’s Island”
Lepra (@lepra) are really excited to be working with Victoria Hislop, Gill Smith and Walker Books on a free educational resource based on the children’s book, Maria’s Island.
Maria’s Island is a compelling story for #KS2 and #KS3 students which follows a family impacted by leprosy, a disease which is often misunderstood. The book examines the challenges they face and how they overcome them.
If your school is looking for a charity to support, then the educational resources, created by Walker Books, can be used for free in class or assembly, alongside a video presentation about how your school can fundraise for Lepra.
Reunify The Marbles
Victoria hislop joined protestors, including six members of parliament, at the British Museum in London on Sunday to call for the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles with Greece as international support grows for a resolution to the decades-long cultural row.
The protest was organized by the advocacy group British Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles (BCRPM) and marked the 13th anniversary of the inauguration of the Acropolis Museum in Athens.
Activists unfurled Greek flags and a banner reading “Reunify the Marbles!” inside the museum, while English author and honorary Greek citizen Victoria Hislop presented a cake with the numbers “1” and “3.” The 5th-century BCE statues have been held in the British institutions since 1816, after they were removed from the facade of the Acropolis under the direction of Scottish nobleman Lord Elgin.
A dramatic and moving story set in the same world as the international bestseller The Island from the celebrated novelist Victoria Hislop.
The absorbing story of the Cretan village of Plaka and the tiny, deserted island of Spinalonga – Greece’s former leprosy colony – is told to us by Maria Petrakis, one of the children in the original version of The Island. She tells us of the ancient and misunderstood disease of leprosy, exploring the themes of stigma, shame and the treatment of those who are different, which are as relevant for children as adults. Gill Smith’s rich, full-colour illustrations will transport the reader to the timeless and beautiful Greek landscape and Mediterranean seascape.
“The idea came out of a conversation with some school teachers in Crete.” said Victoria “They commented that there were so many themes in the story that were as relevant to children as to adults but felt that the original novel was a little too grown-up for many of them. I realised that much of the book is actually about children and their experiences of stigma and loss, so this has been a wonderful experience for me, to look at things through their eyes. Writing for children requires a whole different set of skills and I hope they will enjoy reading it.”
Buy Maria’s Island : Bookshop.org | Waterstones | Foyles | WH Smith | Amazon
Praise for Maria’s Island
The tale is narrated by Maria, one of the children in Hislop’s novel The Island, from which this engrossing yarn is skillfully adapted for younger readers.
― The Daily Telegraph
Sometimes poignant but never upsetting, this book highlights the strength of love, friendship and resilience over adversity. Complemented wonderfully by Gill Smith’s beautiful illustrations, this is an ideal book for older early readers who are ready explore more complex themes associated such as coping with adversity and having respect for others who may be different from themselves.
– Gazette Herald Books of the Month
I picked this book up as soon as it arrived and couldn’t put it down. My favourite things were the Greek setting and the history in the story, and I loved that the character was called Anna – best name ever! I didn’t know much about this story before I read it and enjoyed finding out about the adventures. I would recommend it to my friends. I liked the illustrations too.
— Anna, Age 11 ― Toppsta
“…a powerful story about love, stigma and hope.”
– Mini Travellers
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When Alexis meets Stephanos, the taverna owner in THE ISLAND, he presents her with a platter of Greek meze with stuffed zucchini flowers. Hands up if you can’t wait for that time when you will next be sitting in a taverna, with a soft Meltemi wind and the sun glinting off the water?
Again, where can I see" The island" film in English please
Oh my goodness just looks amazing out of this world. I still loved sitting in this Taverna across from Spinalonga x
Beautiful and so many memories
Kefalonia in May I hope 🙏 Went to Peloponnese last year and found a few of your books in my hotel ..most I had read but I found one that had escaped me . You capture Greece so well 😍
Looking on the right... the same tavern 🤔💙
Most definitely! Bring on the sun ☀️
Its a nice warm day here now on Lefkas...just a shame no shoreside tavernas are open yet....
Definitely ❤️❤️
Julie Morgan!!!! 15 years later!!🤣🤣🤷♀️xx
🙋♀️Can't wait to eat chicken in Epidavros at Vasiliki, she has the best chicken...
July for me x
Crete in June💕
🇬🇷💙
Dave Arliss
🙋♀️
🙋♀️
🙌
💙🇬🇷
🖐🖐
Lefkada 2nd June
If you are interested in writing, Victoria says: “It’s hard when you are in full flow to leave it all behind when you shut your laptop for the evening. Your characters are still with you, more real than the friends or family that you are sitting with at a table – however, I would urge any young writer not to sit down at that table and talk about what they are writing. My recommendation is to keep the idea close and save all the story-telling energy for the page.”
So pretty 💕
Sublim kooool
Victoria’s tip for a day trip out of Athens is to visit Nafplio: “It is, quite simply, beautiful. Situated on the sea with a spectacular fortress, pretty Venetian buildings and a magnificent square packed with cafes and ice cream shops, it is another world.”
It is very beautiful- I was told it used to be the capital of Greece - my daughter in law was born there and two of my grandchildren were brought up there - they have family there and we love to visit - it’s like paradise ❤️❤️
I was an au pair way back in the 70s the family I worked for had a summer house near Epidaurus -they had theatrical connections. Nafplio was the place they went for serious shopping. Amazing times. Beautiful places
Still, that's a 2 hour drive. So might as well visit Epidaurus, Thyrins and Mycene while you're heading that way..😂
Wonderful
Inspiration for a new novel perhaps...
A beautiful city but terrible for finding somewhere to park your car!
I agree x
Has Victoria been to Symi? Quite a history there! 📖
Lots of stories to tell there too ❤️
I love Nafplio!
La capitale avant Athènes. C est super beau
Magnifique ville
Victoria já conhece Portugal?. De norte a sul é lindíssimo. Dava para escrever um bom livro.
Sue Cole… One for this summer.
Love Nafplio
In THE THREAD Katerina is separated from her mother, Zenia, during their flight from Smyrna, and while she must begin a new life in Thessaloniki, thoughts of tracking down her mother are never far from her mind. What did you think of Katarina’s story?
Loved the whole story ❤️❤️
Loved the book ❤️
this was a beautiful story and the first of your books I had read and loved it and your others as well.
Love it! ❤️ on pourrait parler longuement des rapports familiaux qui régissent notre vie. Certains disent qu'on pourrait fonder nos sociétés sur d'autres rapports, sur l'amitié par exemple. "On choisit ses amis, pas sa famille"....
Congratulations to Jess Ware, Anne Pike and Jess Thomas for each winning a paperback copy of Victoria’s novel THE THREAD. And thanks to everyone else that entered.
I have already got the book and read it. I’m sure the winners will really enjoy the read. I certainly did x
It’s a great read, personally I think it’s Victoria’s best!
Best book ever!
Congratulations you lucky winners.
Loved this book-the winners will love it!!!
It is undoubtedly a beautifully researched and constructed book with a very Greek literary feel to it. However I found it harrowing as it might as well be a true story. The Greeks suffered horrifically at the hands of the Nazis but mercifully for the world, fought back and never gave in. We live in Kefalonia and it is within living memory.
Congratulations 🙂
As always. Great 👍👌work
Brilliant story. 💕
I already have this book and many more. All amazing books, Victoria is one of my favourite authors 💕
My favourite. X
❤️ going back to Thessaloniki this summer. It has a pull!! Xxx
À quand en français please, SVP
Dommage !
Thank you 🥰🎊
Thank you 😊
Are you looking for a book that evokes the landscapes of Greece? Victoria thinks the sinister and threatening THE MAGUS by John Fowles can give readers a greater understanding about Greece. On the book’s setting on the island of Spetses, Victoria says: “It evokes its atmosphere and landscape perfectly, and the smell of pines seems to rise from every page”.
I read everything I can come across of novels where the plot is taken from Greece.
On holiday I often have 2’-3 books, but rarely I not read more than one, it’s so much nice to look at, on a beach. The right thing for me is obviously reading books from Greece when I'm on vacation in this beautiful friendly country. Then I get a lot closer to the descriptions of nature, food, herbs and the way we live and culture. This time I gained a lot of the same experience as I read the "Island" of Viktoria Hislop on the beach in Lefkos a few years ago. "The Cypress whispers" was not nearly as strong as the "Island", however it certainly affected my inner strings. The tears trembled with humor and wistfulness, that's the way the life itself is. The book's main characters is Daphne and her Yia-Yia (grandmother). Daphne returns to the island of Erikoussa together with her little daughter Evie after seven years of absence, there will be many strong meetings and experiences. Evie quickly finds herself in the little island where the inhabitants live the simple life in covenant with nature. Erikoussa is an hour's boat ride from Kerkyra, the capital of Corfu with 24,000 inhabitants. Corfu lives around 36,000. Over the past few years, Daphne has become a successful restaurant woman in Manhattan. Now she suddenly sees everything she has missed in taking care of her daughter and giving her the attention she needs and deserves. Here's a lot to get for anyone who has children, it can also be transferred to our stressed everyday life. Yia-Yia, the grandmother, despite the fact that she has no education, is a very wise woman. Seeing that many say the book is a bit boring and predictable, so there is no crime novel, but a great novel about the relationship on the small island of Erikoussa outside Corfu, where only 400 people lived in 2001. Alex who was Daphne's great love and father to Evie died early. Now she has returned to Erikoussa to plan a wedding with Stephen, a forward-looking American businessman. One of the answers she gets while on the island is that he is not right for her, this after long conversations with her Yia-Yia. Should not tell more about the book, but it contains many interesting people and descriptions of Greek mythology and culture. Popi who is a cousin of Daphne is a funny figure, the same is Natse a pretty funny lady who runs the only ho-tel on the island, she smokes with “bothhands”.The most exciting person is of course a man ..haha..Yianni a well-read and scholar man who traveled from Athens to Erikoussa to take care of Yia-Yia, who had rescued his grandmother from the Germans during the last world war. They were Jews that the Germans would eradicate. His encounter with Daphne was very ambivalent, they did not like each other, but they had the same passion and this ended up in good deep conversation "The cypresses whisper is a rich and nuanced story of a woman's strong connection with the family and to the past. Yvette Manessis Corporon creates a beautiful world you will soon forget. I have just been to Korfu Once. IN SHORT(not in shorts haha) Together with her little daughter Evie, Daphne is back on the Greek island where she spent so many happy summers together with her yia-yia, her Greek grandmother. In a few days, Stephen, the husband she will marry, and everything is ready for weddings. But reconsidered with the grandmother - and the encounter with a mysterious man - makes her doubt whether she has made the right choice. During some intense days on the lush Greek island, myths, magic and grandmother's own secrets combine to be a beautiful story of love and family life. Erikoussa (Greek: Ερεικούσσα) is a Greek island within the Ionian Islands. The name is derived from the Latin name of the bagling genus (Erica). [Needs reference] In Italian, however, the island is called Merlera. There is only one town on the island, also called Erikoussa. At the 2001 census [1], the island had 498 inhabitants. The area is 3.7 km². The island is located off the northwest coast of the island of Kor-fu, and it is approximately the same distance from Corfu in the southeast, Mathraki in the southwest and Othoni in the west. As a result of the local self-government reform in 2011, the island is part of the municipality of Corfu of which it is a regional entity. [2] The island has plenty of green forests filled with cypresses and olive trees. It has two beaches, Porto (Πόρτο) and Braghini (Μπραγκίνι), both Italian names given when the island was subjugated to the Republic of Venice; the former means 'port'. Braghini is little used although this beach is slightly better than the former but is further away from the main part of the island. There are two ways to get to Erikoussa, either with a boat called "Sea Away" leaving Sidari, a town in the north of Corfu, or with "Alexandros", a boat leaving Corfu. The first trip takes around 40 minutes while the latter takes around 2 hours and 45 minutes.
