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"The war"
From 1940 to 1949, Greece was caught in the middle of a war- the Greeks had been divided into two different parties. Like many other victims, Eleni's little village of Lia was one of the many places caught in the crossfire of the war. Eleni most likely would have survived, but she went against the government party running her village to save her children. The soldiers that took over her village were called "Guerrillas" -
"Amerikana"
Eleni Gatzoyiannis was the mother of five, four girls and one boy Nicholas (author).She was married to Christos, a Greek who was living/working in America, while she lived in a little remote village called Lia by the Albanian border. She is very strong willed and brave. There is no doubt that she loves her children, as she died for them. -
"Super human quality"
Eleni had perseverance. She always looked forward and hoped. She had to provide for her family alone during Greece's civil war. As a woman who's husband is away in America, this is very impressive and difficult. She has to run things like the farm work, and be able to provide food and shelter for her children. Eleni had the heart of a mother -
"Quest"
In the heat of the war, Eleni's only quest is keeping her children safe. She tries and tries. She devised a plan so that her oldest daughter doesn't have to fight, but they instead take the second oldest. She tries to get food for her children. When she hears that the government will be taking away the children of Lia to give them a "better life" until the war is over, she devises a plan to help her children escape. -
"An unfamiliar world"
Eleni never went to America like she wished, but her husband Christos did bring her somewhere else. She was sick, and so that proper doctors could help her, he brought her to Corfu, Greece. There as she got better, Christos brought her gifts and they danced the night away. This is the only time she left Lia besides going to Yannina, a town southeast from Lia. -
"Mentor/Guide"
Eleni's mother in law, Fotini, lived with Eleni for 10 years, from the moment Eleni was brought into the household (the role of a woman) by Fotini's son, Christos. She was like a mentor/mother to her. She helped her and supported her, and was always there for Eleni. She helped pray for Eleni to have son, and up until her death never stopped believing Eleni would give birth to a son. Eleni loved Fotini, her being one of the only ones truly there for her. -
"Obstacles"
Eleni faces many obstacles. The Italians invade, causing her and her family/village to flee and spend a few nights in a cave. She deals with lack of food and providing for her children. The army wants the firstborn daughter, so Eleni regretfully cripples her oldest. They take the second oldest instead. The men want to take away her children, so they plan to escape. But at the last second she has to stay behind. -
"Loosing faith 2"
When the government came to Eleni's house, they didn't find the children. Eleni was accused of giving them important government secrets that they would give the apposing party, although all she did was send her children to safety with their uncle. They tortured and interrogated her severely up until her trial -
"Loosing faith 1"
The government wants to take away the children of Lia so that they may have a better life, so that they do not die from a bomb of war or starvation. Most mothers of Lia won't give up their children, Eleni being one of them. The government eventually went to come forcefully take the children from their homes. Eleni did not want this fate for her children, so she planed their escape. They would all go the next village over where their uncle was. But the men needed the mothers to work. -
"Regaining strength"
Eleni thought it was all over, but the thought that her children were safe with their uncle kept her going. She was a strong willed and stubborn woman who loved her children. The beatings were severe, and in her own house, and she just wished she could pass out so she wouldn't have to deal with it. -
"No reward"
Eleni was never saved. No night in shining armor came and rescued her. She stood trial. A woman was forced to testify against Eleni so that she could save her newborn son, and so Eleni was found guilty. She was executed on the execution hill, with first a bullet to the stomach before the finishing bullet to the head a millisecond later. Her last words were "My Children!!!" which she yelled right before she was shot -
"About the author"
Eleni's youngest child and only son, Nicholas, wrote this book. Him and his 3 sisters escaped to America with their father shortly after their mother’s death, his 4th sister eventually joining them. He grew up in America, went to collage, got married and started a family. When he was an adult, the Greek government tried to deny any killings of fellow Greeks. Nicholas knew that wasn’t true, as they killed 600,000 Greeks, including his mother and aunt in the war in Greece from 1940 to 1949 -
"Citations"
Skordas, Aggelos _. "Greece.GreekReporter.com Latest News from
Greece." GreeceGreekReportercom Latest News from Greece.
Greek Reporter, 27 Oct. 2014. Web. 31 Jan. 2016.
Gage, Joan _. "A Rolling Crone: A House in a Greek Village." A
Rolling Crone: A House in a Greek Village. A Rolling Crone,
12 July 2011. Web. 31 Jan. 2016.
Stavros. "Eleni." 'My Greek Odyssey' Typepad, 13 May 2007.
Web. 31 Jan. 2016
