Eleni [J0065]

1996 PB reprint of 1983 original,in nice clean condition. In 1948, as civil war ravaged Greece, children were abducted and sent to communist "camps" inside the Iron Curtain. Eleni Gatzoyiannis, forty-one, defied the traditions of her small village and the terror of the communist insurgents to arrange for the escape of her three daughters and her son, Nicola. For that act, she was imprisoned, tortured, and executed in cold blood. Nicholas Gage joined his father in Massachusetts at the age of nine and grew up to become a top New York Times investigative reporter, honing his skills with one thought in mind: to return to Greece and uncover the one story he cared about most: the story of his mother. Eleni takes you into the heart a village destroyed in the name of ideals and into the soul of a truly heroic woman.

From recent-ish Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "Possibly the most moving book I've ever read. The fact that it's not fiction makes it even more painful to read, but so incredible as well."; "So incredibly written , such raw emotions and accounts, really drew me in. His mum would be so proud of what he has written."; "I read this book back in 1983, when it came out, as I was working for the publishers at the time. It is an amazing story about how, with determination anything can be achieved! Was turned into an equally credible film."