A Greek Tragedy
One Day, a Deadly Shipwreck, and the Human Cost of the Refugee Crisis
-
- 15,99 €
Descrizione dell’editore
SILVER MEDAL WINNER IN NONFICTION FOR THE 95TH ANNUAL CALIFORNIA BOOK AWARDS
A 2026 FINALIST FOR THE LOS ANGELES TIMES BOOK PRIZE AND THE PEN/GALBRAITH AWARD FOR NONFICTION
Five Days at Memorial meets Into the Raging Sea in this “vivid snapshot of a broken asylum system” (Kirkus Reviews)—the gripping true story of a devastating shipwreck during the biggest refugee crisis since World War II.
On October 28, 2015, a boat meant for only a few dozen passengers capsized off the coast of the Greek island of Lesvos. Hundreds of refugees, forced in desperation onto the overloaded boat manned by armed smugglers, were tossed into a roiling sea. The resulting loss of life, the largest in a single day during the biggest refugee crisis since World War II, shocked the world.
After nearly a decade of research and interviews, investigative reporter Jeanne Carstensen has captured every detail of the dramatic twenty-four hours. This includes the recollections of the refugees’ lives before they left their homes and a full account of the courageous rescue efforts of the Greek islanders and volunteers rushing to help, even as their government and the EU failed to act. In this remarkable narrative feat, Carstensen brilliantly showcases the extraordinary heroism of ordinary people in extreme circumstances.
In a world where forced migration is on the rise, and where standing up to protect our neighbors can come at great personal risk, A Greek Tragedy challenges us to confront our collective humanity. This unforgettable testament of our times is “a crushing account of a senseless tragedy” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) and a compassionate depiction of the lengths to which a person will go to save another human being.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Journalist Carstensen debuts with a riveting blow-by-blow account of the Oct. 28, 2015, sinking of a boat full of refugees near the Greek island of Lesbos. Nearly 300 passengers were rescued after the overcrowded boat carrying them from Turkey capsized in the Aegean, while several dozen drowned—the single largest loss of life of the Mediterranean refugee crisis that year. Carstensen creates a vivid panorama of the event that also serves as a kaleidoscopic look at the conveyor belt–like system that turned the Mediterranean into a mass "graveyard" over the course of the 2010s. She includes fascinating perspectives from the residents of Turkish seaside towns where the financial incentives for people smuggling are so high that almost everyone is involved ("Locals who didn't take part in this business were seen as imbeciles," one interviewee explains), Greek rescue workers who recall arriving at a hellish scene (one recounts how a fellow deckhand spiraled into a panic attack as "cries for help rang out at them from every direction"), and a multinational group of survivors whose harrowing recollections bring vivid life, both terrible and sweet, back to the nameless dead (playful children roughhousing with their parents before the wreck; a life-jacketed man bobbing in the water during the aftermath, attempting, but failing for some time, to drown himself after losing his children). It's a crushing account of a senseless tragedy. Correction: A previous version of this review incorrectly stated that more than 200 passengers drowned and several dozen were rescued.
