Greece has always been celebrated for its classical past, whitewashed villages and cerulean seas, but in recent years the country has been at the centre of a debt crisis that has sown economic ruin, spurred panic in international markets, and tested Europe's decades-old project of forging a closer union.

With vivid character-driven narratives and engaging reporting that offers an immersive sense of place, this comprehensive account brings to life the causes of the country's financial collapse and examines the changes emerging in its aftermath. A rebellion against tax authorities breaks out on a normally serene Aegean island. A mayor from a bucolic, northern Greek village is gunned down by the municipal treasurer. An ageing, leftist hero of the Second World War fights to win compensation from Germany for the wartime occupation. A once marginal group of neo-Nazis rises to political prominence out of a ramshackle Athens neighborhood. THE FULL CATASTROPHE goes beyond the transient coverage in the daily headlines to deliver an enduring and absorbing portrait of modern Greece.

James Angelos

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