In 1951 the Australian writers Charmian Clift and George Johnston left post-war London for Greece. Settling first on the island of Kalymnos, then Hydra, their plan was to live simply and focus on their writing. The result is two of Charmian Clift’s best known and most loved books, the memoirs Mermaid Singing and Peel Me a Lotus.
Mermaid Singing relays the culture shock and the sheer delight of their first year on the tiny sponge-fishing island of Kalymnos. Clift paints an evocative picture of the characters and sun-drenched rhythms of traditional life, long before backpackers and mass tourism descended.
‘Charmian Clift caught the magic and menace of Greek Island life . . . a must read memoir.’ Telegraph
‘These are blissful reissues that will bring Grecian heat and light to your life, and much more besides.’ The Bookseller