<p>Georgios Vizyenos (1849-1896) is one of Greece’s best-loved writers. His stories, written in 1883-4, are set in his native Thrace, a corner of Europe where Greece, Bulgaria and Turkey meet. Each title poses an enigma: Where did Yorgis’ grandfather travel on his only journey? What was Yorgis’ mother’s sin? Who was responsible for his brother’s murder? At the end of each story the narrator possesses some knowledge that forces him – and his readers – to revise their earlier assumptions, which were based on incomplete knowledge. Because Vizyenos wants us to experience the difficult transition from ignorance to knowledge, he leaves us in suspense until the very end. Vizyenos’ stories evoke a time when individual Greeks and Turks could share each other’s joys and pains despite the hostile relations between their governments.</p>

Thracian Tales

Literature & Fiction

Georgios Vizyenos

Literary

Aiora Books

Georgios Vizyenos is one of Greece's best-loved writers. "Moskov Selim" is set in Thrace, a corner of Europe where Greece, Turkey and Bulgaria meet. Selim is a Muslim name, yet "Moskov" implies that he is a Russian. Vizyenos' fascinating and moving story is set during a time of constant wars between Russians and Turks whose outcome would decide the future of south-east Europe: Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria were becoming independent of the Ottoman empire, while Greece was to gain huge territories at the empire's expense. Although Istanbul would remain in Turkey, it would no longer be the seat of the Ottoman Sultan, who, as caliph, was the leader of the world's Muslims. Vizyenos' story evokes a time when Greeks and Turks could share each other's joys and pains despite the hostile relations between their governments. Listening to the protagonist's life story, the narrator of "Moskov Selim" discovers that this Turk is a kindred spirit, despite the gulf of nationality and religion that separates them. "Vizyenos brings into question the nature of identity and of reality as constructed by reason and senses". Roderick Beaton Director, Centre of Hellenic Studies, King's College London

Moskov Selim

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Georgios Vizyenos. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Georgios Vizyenos

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Georgios Vizyenos. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Thracian Tales

Moskov Selim