This new edition of Richard Clark’s Crete – A Notebook is an updated version of his bestselling book, taking in any necessary changes since it first came out in 2012.
Praise for Crete – A Notebook
‘Clark is particularly good on the colours, flavours and scents of Greece. He has got under the skin of the place in a way few outsiders have been able to.’
Mark Hudson – Winner Somerset Maugham Award, Thomas Cook Travel Book Award, Samuel Johnson Prize. Bestselling author of Our Grandmothers’ Drums; Coming Back Brockens; The Music in My Head; Titian: The Last Days
‘I was really surprised and delighted by the book. I read every word. The author is a fine writer and describes the island vividly. It's not a guidebook although there's a lot of information here that should be in any good guidebook. He travels around the island in clockwise direction, writing short essays as he goes, which are a mix of personal memoir, history, and an evocation of place. The last one he does very well, as it brought back memories to me of my own travels around the island. He really does capture places well.’
Mike Gerrard – Author of AA Spiral Guide to Crete.
‘For those using the book as an introduction to Crete, there are all the island must-knows, from the turbulent, traumatic history of Moni Toplou to the pleasures of strolling round Rethymnon. As someone who adores Greece and wants to get back there as soon as I can, I also revelled in the back story to everything from Greek weddings to their love of olive oil. Despite the fact that I am running low on superlatives, this book runs the risk of being a hidden gem, so do read it if you get the opportunity.’
Travel journalist Emma French, www.phileasfrench.com
Praise for The Greek Islands – A Notebook
‘This is a beautifully written book, not just a travel companion but a journey in itself through Greek History, it’s culture and the countryside. Reading this book is an education in itself and I found myself so much the richer in having read it.’
E.J. Russell – Bestselling author of Return to the Aegean
‘Travel literature constitutes the vast majority of my reading these days, and I devour as much online and off as I can. In examining other writers' style and content, I have become accustomed to dipping in and out of work. The extent to which I have been unable to put Richard Clark's book down is a tribute to its compulsive readability.’
Travel journalist Emma French, www.phileasfrench.com
'My library contains almost all of the noteworthy books about Greece and her islands and this will be a welcomed addition. I will place it next to my collection of books by the late and great Patrick Leigh Fermor, because I think Richard Clark’s writing is as close to Fermor as we will ever come again.'
Aurelia Smeltz, author Labyrinthine Ways; A Lone Red Apple
In 1982, on a whim, the English journalist Richard Clark upped sticks and left the country of his birth to go and work as a teacher in Crete. So began a love affair with the island to which he still returns as often as possible.
Crete - A Notebook is a series of snapshots of his experiences on an island he has grown to cherish. It is less of a travel guide and more of a travelling companion.
Whether a regular visitor or a first-time traveller there, this book provides an invaluable insight into life past and present on this exquisite island.
The author is a writer, editor and journalist who has worked on an array of national newspapers and magazines in the UK. He is married with two grown up children and lives in Kent.
Richard Clark is also the author of The Greek Islands – A Notebook; Rhodes – A Notebook; Corfu – A Notebook; and Richard Clark’s Greek Islands Anthology
Praise for Crete – A Notebook
‘Clark is particularly good on the colours, flavours and scents of Greece. He has got under the skin of the place in a way few outsiders have been able to.’
Mark Hudson – Winner Somerset Maugham Award, Thomas Cook Travel Book Award, Samuel Johnson Prize. Bestselling author of Our Grandmothers’ Drums; Coming Back Brockens; The Music in My Head; Titian: The Last Days
‘I was really surprised and delighted by the book. I read every word. The author is a fine writer and describes the island vividly. It's not a guidebook although there's a lot of information here that should be in any good guidebook. He travels around the island in clockwise direction, writing short essays as he goes, which are a mix of personal memoir, history, and an evocation of place. The last one he does very well, as it brought back memories to me of my own travels around the island. He really does capture places well.’
Mike Gerrard – Author of AA Spiral Guide to Crete.
‘For those using the book as an introduction to Crete, there are all the island must-knows, from the turbulent, traumatic history of Moni Toplou to the pleasures of strolling round Rethymnon. As someone who adores Greece and wants to get back there as soon as I can, I also revelled in the back story to everything from Greek weddings to their love of olive oil. Despite the fact that I am running low on superlatives, this book runs the risk of being a hidden gem, so do read it if you get the opportunity.’
Travel journalist Emma French, www.phileasfrench.com
Praise for The Greek Islands – A Notebook
‘This is a beautifully written book, not just a travel companion but a journey in itself through Greek History, it’s culture and the countryside. Reading this book is an education in itself and I found myself so much the richer in having read it.’
E.J. Russell – Bestselling author of Return to the Aegean
‘Travel literature constitutes the vast majority of my reading these days, and I devour as much online and off as I can. In examining other writers' style and content, I have become accustomed to dipping in and out of work. The extent to which I have been unable to put Richard Clark's book down is a tribute to its compulsive readability.’
Travel journalist Emma French, www.phileasfrench.com
'My library contains almost all of the noteworthy books about Greece and her islands and this will be a welcomed addition. I will place it next to my collection of books by the late and great Patrick Leigh Fermor, because I think Richard Clark’s writing is as close to Fermor as we will ever come again.'
Aurelia Smeltz, author Labyrinthine Ways; A Lone Red Apple
In 1982, on a whim, the English journalist Richard Clark upped sticks and left the country of his birth to go and work as a teacher in Crete. So began a love affair with the island to which he still returns as often as possible.
Crete - A Notebook is a series of snapshots of his experiences on an island he has grown to cherish. It is less of a travel guide and more of a travelling companion.
Whether a regular visitor or a first-time traveller there, this book provides an invaluable insight into life past and present on this exquisite island.
The author is a writer, editor and journalist who has worked on an array of national newspapers and magazines in the UK. He is married with two grown up children and lives in Kent.
Richard Clark is also the author of The Greek Islands – A Notebook; Rhodes – A Notebook; Corfu – A Notebook; and Richard Clark’s Greek Islands Anthology
