Synopsis

Greek by Osmosis is a warm and witty memoir chronicling an American woman’s decades-long immersion into life on a remote Greek island after falling in love with a charming Greek student. From navigating a real estate market with no agents, to building a house via faxes and faith, she discovers a special world without secrets, ruled by Island Time, mysterious bureaucracy, and endearing customs. Along the way, she battles cement-eating ants, goat invasions, and attacks by a murder of crows, while learning to cook Greek foods at her angelic mother-in-law’s elbow.  

 

With humor and heart, she captures the joys and frustrations of learning Greek and adapting to island life—where the night sky stuns, hospitality abounds, and even doing the laundry is an adventure. Infused with Greek words, recipes, and mishaps, Greek by Osmosis is a love letter to an island, a marriage, and the beautifully chaotic adventure of becoming part of another culture.  Vivid, atmospheric, and evocative, it transports the reader to the island with rich sensory details.  

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If you buy an ebook, and would like the recipes in a .pdf file, send me a note below, and I'll send it to you.​

Praise for Greek by Osmosis​

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"Greek by Osmosis will appeal to readers who enjoy memoirs rooted in place, stories of cross-cultural marriage, or simply those who dream of Mediterranean summers. It is both a portrait of an island and of a marriage, told with clarity, warmth, and a keen eye for detail."

—⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Carol Thompson for Readers’ Favorite

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“An engaging memoir […] a love letter to the island and its people."
“Detailed and inviting [… ] I felt as if she was welcoming me to share in the food, culture, and hospitality of Greece.” ​​​​​​

—⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Alissa Deann for Readers’ Favorite

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BookLife Prize Critic's Report:​

“[Candris] offers riveting personal insight from a unique perspective—an outsider who is also intimately connected to the Island's people and traditions.”

"[T]he specific quirks of island life—and her willingness to candidly portray her experiences, both good and bad —give her writing personality and charisma." ​

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"In Greek by Osmosis [. . . ], Candris writes about Greece as it revealed itself to her gradually—through marriage, family, language, food, construction disasters, maddening bureaucracy and decades spent returning to the same small island in the Cyclades."

—The Pappas Post, "A Life Learned Slowly: Greek by Osmosis Finds the Greece Beyond the Postcard."

 

"[A] charming book [. . .] a well-written memoir."

—The National Herald, "Laura Aristidou Candris Shares Her Memoir, 'Greek by Osmosis'"

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"This is such a delightful read - a true love-letter to a Greek island, combining memoir, food writing, and travelogue with witty insights as well as humor. If you enjoyed A Year in Provence or Under the Tuscan Sun, you will love Greek by Osmosis. "

—Clare Langley-Hawthorne, author of the Ursula Marlow Mysteries

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"Greek by Osmosis is a delightful and candid memoir that transports the reader to a beautiful island in the Aegean Sea. [ ... ] Greek by Osmosis is a thoroughly entertaining escape to a place some may visit but few will experience and embrace as this author has."

—Carol Light, author of the Windy City and Southern Secrets mystery series

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