Here we go again...

The historical and political events of the period covered by the book form the framework, which is fleshed out with abundant details of everyday life and a wealth of emotions. The story takes on a fictional quality, and the narrative, told in the local dialect, transports us to Istanbul in the 1960s. The characters share the same ‘voice’ as the anonymous crowd of exiles, people with different personal experiences of loss, yet also of resilience, strength and hope for a better tomorrow in a new land. The book AINTE PALI... Hellenism is uprooted from Constantinople (1958–1968) is a chronological continuation of Aglaia Konstantinidou-Kloukina’s first book, entitled ‘OPOU LOIPON... Once Upon a Time in the City (1948–1958) and chronicles the tragic vicissitudes experienced by the Greek community of Constantinople following the expulsions of 1964.

The author was born in Constantinople during the golden age of the Greek diaspora. ‘WHERE THEN’ is her first book. With particular sensitivity, nostalgia and love, she describes, through the soul and eyes of a child, the story of a family in the 1950s in the City. Through everyday life, the pleasant and unpleasant moments, she describes the customs and traditions, the political and social events, and the relationships between people of different ethnicities, languages and religions, bringing to life the ethos and style, the culture of the era, and that of the diaspora. It mentions neighbourhoods, churches and schools, holiday destinations, transport, shops, bazaars and markets, food and professions, providing a significant account of the cosmopolitan yet deeply traditional life in the multi-ethnic and multicultural Istanbul. And then, the September events. The insecurity, the fear, the despair, the destruction. The need to uproot, the exile, the settling and adapting to life in Greece. The book, written in the local dialect, a vibrant language that uses words and expressions of Italian, French and Turkish origin, characteristic of Constantinople’s multiculturalism, reminds the older generation and teaches the younger one an important part of our history that must not be forgotten.