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Description
The million-copy number one bestseller On the brink of a life-changing decision, Alexis Fielding longs to find out about her mother's past. But Sofia has never spoken of it. All she admits to is growing up in a small Cretan village before moving to London. When Alexis decides to visit Crete, however, Sofia gives her daughter a letter to take to an old friend, and promises that through her she will learn more. Arriving in Plaka, Alexis is astonished to see that it lies a stone's throw from the tiny, deserted island of Spinalonga - Greece's former leper colony. Then she finds Fotini, and at last hears the story that Sofia has buried all her life: the tale of her great-grandmother Eleni and her daughters and a family rent by tragedy, war and passion. She discovers how intimately she is connected with the island, and how secrecy holds them all in its powerful grip...… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member DeltaQueen50
The Island is Victoria Hislop’s debut novel and is set on the island of Crete. The book covers the lives and loves of a number of generations of women from one family and covers much of the 20th century. It opens in the present as Alexis comes to Crete both on a holiday with her boyfriend and to
I loved the story and was intrigued by all the information about leprosy and the small community of Spinalonga where lepers were sent to live away from the general population. Spinalonga is a tiny island just off the coast of Crete, it was a leper colony from 1903 to 1957. This terrible, misunderstood disease was a living death sentence as victims were shunned and forced away from their families and homes. Considered “unclean” a leper was unwelcome wherever they went. Spinalonga was, for many, a refuge. Here they could live in relative peace, had access to doctors, and the company of others afflicted by the disease.
The story draws the reader in with it’s wonderful descriptions, strong characters and moving story-line. There were some flaws to the book mostly in the predictability of the family saga and some overload of information, but her research was excellent and I learned a lot about the disease of leprosy and fell in love with the island of Crete. Overall The Island was well worth my time invested in the reading.
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search out the story of her family on her secretive mother’s side. What she finds is a strange history of leprosy, adultery, and murder. She also finds that the women in her family have been strong, loyal and caring. I loved the story and was intrigued by all the information about leprosy and the small community of Spinalonga where lepers were sent to live away from the general population. Spinalonga is a tiny island just off the coast of Crete, it was a leper colony from 1903 to 1957. This terrible, misunderstood disease was a living death sentence as victims were shunned and forced away from their families and homes. Considered “unclean” a leper was unwelcome wherever they went. Spinalonga was, for many, a refuge. Here they could live in relative peace, had access to doctors, and the company of others afflicted by the disease.
The story draws the reader in with it’s wonderful descriptions, strong characters and moving story-line. There were some flaws to the book mostly in the predictability of the family saga and some overload of information, but her research was excellent and I learned a lot about the disease of leprosy and fell in love with the island of Crete. Overall The Island was well worth my time invested in the reading.
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LibraryThing member womansheart
Small Island - BIG story
This was an interesting read. Learning more about Crete and the Leper Colony that existed on the Island of Spinalonga Island, just of the coast from Plaka.
The author is a travel writer, I believe, and that certainly came through in this , her first novel. I was almost more
The characters are fine, but, the story is fairly predictable. The friendship between two of the main young women is pleasant and an important part of the story. Worthwhile and entertaining, but not a book that I would likely re-read.
Three Stars out of a possible Five Stars. ***
This was an interesting read. Learning more about Crete and the Leper Colony that existed on the Island of Spinalonga Island, just of the coast from Plaka.
The author is a travel writer, I believe, and that certainly came through in this , her first novel. I was almost more
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interested in Crete culture, Greek history, and the everyday life in the Leper Colony than I was in the story of the three generations of women who were connected to Plaka/Spinalonga. I especially liked reading about the era during WWII and the German occupation of Greece. It is an era that I have not read about before. The characters are fine, but, the story is fairly predictable. The friendship between two of the main young women is pleasant and an important part of the story. Worthwhile and entertaining, but not a book that I would likely re-read.
Three Stars out of a possible Five Stars. ***
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LibraryThing member dwate
Despite its promise, I found this international bestseller deeply disappointing. The setting is fascinating – the island of Spinalonga in Crete, which was a leper colony from 1903 to 1957. Hislop does give the reader some idea of village life in Crete in the 1940’s and 1950’s, but this book
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could have been so much better. The style is prosaic; every punch is telegraphed and every description is three sentences too long. There is little subtlety in the characterisation and Hislop seems to feel it necessary to explain their every move, leaving nothing to the reader’s imagination. The players are generally cardboard caricatures and it is difficult to find much empathy with them. I persevered to the end, to find out what happened to the settlement on Spinalonga, but found it all very contrived. Show Less
LibraryThing member astridnr
Thoroughly enjoyable read! This historical novel is both informative and descriptive. Set in Crete The Island is the story of a family's secret past. It reveals that the protagonist's ancestors had leprosy and were exiled to Spinalonga, an island leper colony off the coast of Plaka. The writer does
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a fantastic job of capturing the essence of the Greek island experience painting a picture for us of the sights, sounds, and cooking aromas in the air. I definitely felt transported in reading this book. The Spinalonga leper colony was not at all what I expected. In this fictionalized representation its residents led a very full and social life growing their own vegetables, running their own shops and caring for each other. In some ways their quality of life was better than that of the villagers in Plaka. What I found most endearing were the characters, their inner strength and their love for one another. Some drama and flawed characters. Show Less
LibraryThing member nakmeister
Alexis, on holiday in Crete, goes on holiday to Crete and seeks out an old friend of her mother's. Her mother would never talk about her past, growing up on Crete, and Alexis hopes to get some answers. She travels to Plaka, and while there is transfixed by the island of Spinalonga, a former leper
This is a really great book. I was interested in the character of Alexis immediately, however the majority of the book was a flashback to more than 50 years ago, telling the story of the history of Alexis's family and their connection with Spinalonga. I similarly empathised with all the major characters, and found I learned a lot about leprosy along the way.
The book didn't hook me in the way many books (mostly thrillers) do. It's pace is much slower, but you always want to keep reading, and the reading itself is a joy, as it is beautifully written. It conjures up images of summer holidays in Greece too, which can't be a bad thing!
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colony.This is a really great book. I was interested in the character of Alexis immediately, however the majority of the book was a flashback to more than 50 years ago, telling the story of the history of Alexis's family and their connection with Spinalonga. I similarly empathised with all the major characters, and found I learned a lot about leprosy along the way.
The book didn't hook me in the way many books (mostly thrillers) do. It's pace is much slower, but you always want to keep reading, and the reading itself is a joy, as it is beautifully written. It conjures up images of summer holidays in Greece too, which can't be a bad thing!
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LibraryThing member OhSnap
I really did enjoy this book. It's described as 'a beach read with a heart' and this is exactly what it is. It's easy to read, not exactly complex or challenging but its a really enthralling, involving story. I loved the setting of the story - a small village on Crete and even though I'd never been
Surprisingly for a book thats considered to be quite lighthearted, it managed to deal with the serious issue of leprosy/disfiguring diseases sensitively and involving them in the plot without ever seeming contrived or self-righteous.
The best thing about this book is that you don't feel that it's trying to be something that it's not. It's unpretentious and simple but never boring or dull. Its also never cliched or cheesy. Its just a genuinely enjoyable read.
I would definately recommend it. It may not have the tension, the complex imagery and themes and the shocking twists and turns that other books have but you will definately find yourself, like me, wanting to book a trip to Crete for your next summer holiday in the hope of experiencing parts of the novel for yourself.
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to Greece or any of its islands, it was so vivid in my mind. Surprisingly for a book thats considered to be quite lighthearted, it managed to deal with the serious issue of leprosy/disfiguring diseases sensitively and involving them in the plot without ever seeming contrived or self-righteous.
The best thing about this book is that you don't feel that it's trying to be something that it's not. It's unpretentious and simple but never boring or dull. Its also never cliched or cheesy. Its just a genuinely enjoyable read.
I would definately recommend it. It may not have the tension, the complex imagery and themes and the shocking twists and turns that other books have but you will definately find yourself, like me, wanting to book a trip to Crete for your next summer holiday in the hope of experiencing parts of the novel for yourself.
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LibraryThing member write.senthil
Very few books have touched my heart as much as this one did. I just loved reading this book. To start with, I found this book out of the blue. When I picked this book up, I had no clue who the author was (Now I know a lot, did a bit of Bing!) and what the premise of the novel was. Now, I am ever
Its a story of a girl called Alexis who sets out to learn more about her family history. She ends up learning the close relationship her family has had with leprosy and how the disease wrecked her family apart. All the characters in the book are so well thought out and so well written about. The author does just a fabulous job of helping us construct the character's image in our minds. I really like Maria's character. Now I cannot wait to go to Spinalonga! Wish, I get that opportunity.
I loved the book so much that I actually forced my girlfriend to read it too and she was equally pleased with the book.
I highly recommend this book.
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so glad that I picked it up. The book is so touching, filled with laughter, pain, love and life! I was so into the book that I couldnt keep wondering what would happen next. I really wished this book wouldn't end.Its a story of a girl called Alexis who sets out to learn more about her family history. She ends up learning the close relationship her family has had with leprosy and how the disease wrecked her family apart. All the characters in the book are so well thought out and so well written about. The author does just a fabulous job of helping us construct the character's image in our minds. I really like Maria's character. Now I cannot wait to go to Spinalonga! Wish, I get that opportunity.
I loved the book so much that I actually forced my girlfriend to read it too and she was equally pleased with the book.
I highly recommend this book.
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LibraryThing member californiareader
Quick, easy read when you don't want to "think" too much. Sad but interesting family saga involving leprosy and a leper colony off the island of Crete.
LibraryThing member southpaw
I really didn't get all the hype about this book. From the raves I'd heard and the huge numbers of copies this book has moved off the shelves, I expected something rather more original. It was an easy, if unchallenging, read; the writing style was fluid but uninspired, the characters sketched
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rather than painted. Basic beach reading at best. Show Less
LibraryThing member posthumose
An excellent novel set in Crete. The historical details of the local island leper colony,Spinalonga, are accurate throughout its fifty year history. We follow a Greek family there through the second world war and beyond for four generations. A truly original story, highly recommended.
LibraryThing member cotto
On the whole, I really enjoyed The Island. It's a story of life in a small village of Crete which is a short boat ride away from the island of Spinalonga, a former leper colony. The fable-like storytelling style of writing was a bit irritating at times. It seemed overly simplistic and is fine for a
I'll take the book for what it is ... a bit over dramatized, a bit of cheesy romance. All the women are devastatingly beautiful and the men are dark and handsome. While reading, you wonder if you would feel as sorry for these people if they were described as ordinary (horrible, I know)! But I have to admit. I cried. It's definitely chick lit but with a bit more purpose as you get a glimpse of what life was like for people banished to a leper colony. I have no idea if the book was historically accurate or not but I won't find myself quoting it just to be on the safe side. Just a bit of light reading.
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short story but not for a novel. I'll take the book for what it is ... a bit over dramatized, a bit of cheesy romance. All the women are devastatingly beautiful and the men are dark and handsome. While reading, you wonder if you would feel as sorry for these people if they were described as ordinary (horrible, I know)! But I have to admit. I cried. It's definitely chick lit but with a bit more purpose as you get a glimpse of what life was like for people banished to a leper colony. I have no idea if the book was historically accurate or not but I won't find myself quoting it just to be on the safe side. Just a bit of light reading.
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LibraryThing member emhromp2
This is a beautiful book. It relates the story of a Greek family of which the mother and a daughter are sent to Spinalonga, an island where lepres are banned to. But there is more to this story. Each family member is different: Anna, the eldest, who rebels against everything and who is embarrased
What is a pity about this story, is that there are only good and less good people. There are no nuances. Anna is 'just' rebellious and Maria, Giorgi en Eleni are 'just' perfect.
I liked learning about the history of Spinalonga, there is a lot of information about that in the book, albeit romanticized.
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by the history of her family. Maria who is almost perfect and has to go to Spinalonga. Giorgo, the father, who never complains. Then there is the next generation: Sofia, Anna's daughter and Alexia, Sofia's daughter. All their stories are intertwined.What is a pity about this story, is that there are only good and less good people. There are no nuances. Anna is 'just' rebellious and Maria, Giorgi en Eleni are 'just' perfect.
I liked learning about the history of Spinalonga, there is a lot of information about that in the book, albeit romanticized.
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LibraryThing member brightspark
This book was different to a lot of the ones I've read recently, but I really enjoyed it. Set in Crete, it's about a family devasted by leprosy, and the courageous (and not so courageous)ways in which they dealt with the blows life dealt them.
The book covers a few decades, meaning that there is a
The author is very descriptive in her writing, but occassionally I felt as though she had written a sentence and then decided to pad it out with descriptive words.
None of the above critcisms detracted, however, from this being a very good read.
The book covers a few decades, meaning that there is a
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lot of detail covering a few months, and then it jumps a number of years, which was a bit frustrating sometimes.The author is very descriptive in her writing, but occassionally I felt as though she had written a sentence and then decided to pad it out with descriptive words.
None of the above critcisms detracted, however, from this being a very good read.
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LibraryThing member mzonderm
An interesting look at what it might have been like inside the leper colony of Spinalonga of the coast of Crete, but the author does not give us any hint of her research, or how much of the story is based on fact. That, plus some stilted dialogue and narrative, lower this books rating a bit, but it
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remains an engaging story. Show Less
LibraryThing member SignoraEdie
Interesting story but very simplistic writing. I wanted more from the author.
LibraryThing member susan139
I must admit I read this in a rush, and it was only afterwards that the book that I really thought about the book. I looked on the internet for photographs of the island of Spinalonga and recognised it from the descriptions from the book. I seemed to bring the fiction to life.
Definitely a book that
Definitely a book that
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grows on you. Show Less
LibraryThing member Lucylocket
A good read. It is a compassionate account of a young womens life after she makes the terrible discovery that she has leprosy. Not sentimental.
LibraryThing member ilurvebooks
Excellent...a great plot and the sort of book that you can picture it as if you are familiar with the setting would highly recommend.
LibraryThing member watfordsupporter
I couldn't put this down. Very well written with the characters coming alive on every page with the plot moving at a fast pace but not that you lose what's going on.
LibraryThing member Janet_Elizabeth
I was given this book & it took me a while to get around to reading it,I am so glad I did.It is a story that drws you in quickly 7 I both wanted to read it & not put it down but then did`nt want it ot end.I liked learning the history of Crete within the family storyline,heavy topic of leprsy
A worthwhile book,I recommend it to many.
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covered iin a powerful & moving way-realistically done,almost as though it was a real family.I have been to Crete & stayed in a small village,I could imagine the scenery & the people from the Authors description----it brought back my memories of my stay.A worthwhile book,I recommend it to many.
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LibraryThing member jet
an interesting insight to the unknown world of leprosy
LibraryThing member JayAckerly
Great feel for Greek island life and culture. Learned alot about leprosy I had not known. Not the greatest writing style but got the job done.
LibraryThing member elliepotten
I don't normally choose 'family saga' novels, but there was something very appealing about the premise of this one. Set on Crete, specifically around the little fishing village of Plaka, it tells the story of several generations of Petrakis women, and their ties to the leper colony on Spinalonga,
I found this to be a very evocative book, filled with the sights, sounds and scents of life in rural Greece. It was also quite educational, giving as it does a comprehensive, if fictionalised, account of life in the leper colony on Spinalonga. It taught me a lot about leprosy, in terms of the disease itself and of the way it was viewed by society at that time. Aspects of the stigma of having a disease and the embarrassment of its physical manifestation continue to ring true for other illnesses and disabilities today, providing an interesting comparison and a pause for reflection. The descriptions of the community on the island were alive with colour and feeling, and I felt myself sinking into the unfamiliar setting and becoming deeply absorbed in the narrative as the family's story unfolded.
I can't believe it's taken me so many years to finally get to this book, but I'm glad I finally plucked it down from the shelf and gave it the attention it deserves. I can see why this book became a bestseller, and I'll be recommending it heartily to anyone looking for a summer read with an wide sweep, a Mediterranean flavour, a thoughtful theme and a whole lot of heart.
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the little island just off the coast. Alexis, British-born and half-Greek, is determined to find out about her mother's family history, despite her unfathomable secrecy. Finally relenting, Sofia sends her daughter to an old friend in Plaka, who finally tells her the story of her family, beginning with her great-grandmother Eleni and her great-grandfather Georgiou and continuing through the years to her mother's lifetime.I found this to be a very evocative book, filled with the sights, sounds and scents of life in rural Greece. It was also quite educational, giving as it does a comprehensive, if fictionalised, account of life in the leper colony on Spinalonga. It taught me a lot about leprosy, in terms of the disease itself and of the way it was viewed by society at that time. Aspects of the stigma of having a disease and the embarrassment of its physical manifestation continue to ring true for other illnesses and disabilities today, providing an interesting comparison and a pause for reflection. The descriptions of the community on the island were alive with colour and feeling, and I felt myself sinking into the unfamiliar setting and becoming deeply absorbed in the narrative as the family's story unfolded.
I can't believe it's taken me so many years to finally get to this book, but I'm glad I finally plucked it down from the shelf and gave it the attention it deserves. I can see why this book became a bestseller, and I'll be recommending it heartily to anyone looking for a summer read with an wide sweep, a Mediterranean flavour, a thoughtful theme and a whole lot of heart.
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LibraryThing member LittleKnife
This is not the sort of book I woud pick up and read and I can't say I expected to like it but I really tried to. The conceit of a modern girl trying to understand decades of family-history seemed a little trite but fortunately the history itself was fascinating in its subjects.
The author's
Since I think it would be utterly unfair to judge this book on its historical accuracy or otherwise I think that the author did quite a good job of depicting a certain type of community particularly in the pre-WW2 section. For me it was more evocative of the Cretan life than it was of the leper colony which might have benefited from further descriptions of the emotional tensions.
Overall the plot was interesting enough to keep my attention, with more than enough tragedy and some redemption for good measure. It was pretty but a little a superficial.
Competent but could do better - as Eleni the teacher might be tempted to say..
The author's
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decriptions at the beginning of the book of some domestic details like cafe tables and the colours of the sea were poetically done but some of that seemed to fade from the end of the novel. I also felt that the description of the physicality of leprosy was somewhat haphazard but I'm not an expert. What struck me as most lacking however was the emotional side. I think the author was trying to convey the stiltedness and formality of the era and culture and even perhaps the difficulty of reading the intentions of others. In part perhaps she suceeded with that but I was left without a real sense of connection to the characters and only real sympathy for one old man.Since I think it would be utterly unfair to judge this book on its historical accuracy or otherwise I think that the author did quite a good job of depicting a certain type of community particularly in the pre-WW2 section. For me it was more evocative of the Cretan life than it was of the leper colony which might have benefited from further descriptions of the emotional tensions.
Overall the plot was interesting enough to keep my attention, with more than enough tragedy and some redemption for good measure. It was pretty but a little a superficial.
Competent but could do better - as Eleni the teacher might be tempted to say..
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LibraryThing member Bauernfeind
Wonderful. A great insight into the lives of individuals struck with such a devastating disease. Told through several generations of Greek citizens in a costal town next to an island where people with leprosy were incarcerated for lack of a better word, this story weaves its way through the
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research and development of a cure for the disease and the impact both the disease and the cure had on this small village. Show Less
Awards
British Book Award (Winner — Newcomer — 2007)