Leigh Fermor could write a train schedule with such relish and dash that it might become a best seller. His sentences are stunning: lines of words, each chosen, each sparkling so that whole scenes appear before the reader’s eyes. This time he travels in Northern Greece and runs into the most in-ter-est-ing people: nomads wearing skins, thieves working their craft through Europe, priests living in silence on the tippety top of a cliff reached only by leg power. He is thrilled by all and respects them all. No crass asides by Paddy (as he was known in his British Secret Service days). The author’s story merits a book of its own. Apparently a biography will appear after his death. [10/08]
Fermor fans, check out http://tinyurl.com/b4xqx3
