On Greece: Must-Reads curated by Josh Hickey of the Hydra Book Club
Literature has the power to transport your mind across worlds, places, and eras, yet sometimes, it also has the unique ability to tether you to a specific locale, forging an internal connection that resonates deeply within. The Hydra Book Club, the brainchild of American writer and literary curator Josh Hickey, blends both feelings. Somewhere in between Hydra, Paris, and Warsaw, Hickey has created a cultural nexus by balancing a museum exhibition, a community center, and a bookstore all in one. This space celebrates Hydra's literary greatness, becoming a go-to hub for both locals and visitors. Since its 2021 debut at the Historical Archives Museum of Hydra, the club has featured an evolving collection of works by iconic writers linked to the island.
We met Josh and asked for his 5(+1) must-reads about Greece from his collection.
“Hydra has a literary heritage spanning nearly 100 years and includes work by many very important artists who have lived or worked here. Making a selection of recommended reading could surely begin with the most well-known authors’ work; Henry Miller’s The Colossus of Maroussi or Leonard Cohen’s much-loved verse. Suggesting these works may seem stating the obvious. Some lesser-known writers have lived intriguing lives on the island and have written some of the most compelling works. My selection reflects a less frontal view of the island and its residents, one that goes deeper through the winding alleyways, higher up the mountain, and more directly into the complexity of this very unique island.'"
1. Peel Me a Lotus, by Charmian Clift
This great autobiographical novel was recently republished after being out of print for several decades. Despite her prolific career writing memoirs, fiction, and chronicles for the Australian and British press, Charmian Clift remains relatively unknown outside her native Australia. As one of the most influential foreign writers on Hydra, Charmian was known to be extremely generous, tending to a flock of artists and writers all in various stages of anxiety, depression, ecstasy, and often alcoholism. For over a decade, she was at the heart of Hydra's artists' community. In Peel me a Lotus, she tells the very personal story of her early days in Hydra, buying a run-down house, having a child, navigating Greek tradition and invasive neighbors all while holding court to a nightly social scene of foreign artists. Polly Samson has written the introduction to this new edition, and her prelude gives a great context from which to start reading.
2. A Rope of Vines, by Brenda Chamberlain
In 'A Rope of Vines,' Welsh writer Brenda Chamberlain chronicles her personal experiences living on the island. Her Greek lover “accidentally” killed an English tourist at the port and was sent to Athens to await trial. Disturbed by the libertine artists and hangers-on in the tavernas around the port, Brenda sought refuge in a monastery, living high on the mountain with the nuns. Her poetic observations are accompanied by her eerie line drawings of the island. Deeply reflective.
3. The Sleepwalker, by Margarita Karapanou
This novel is a complete hallucination, whose main character is the island's policeman, who is also part God and part serial killer. As tensions escalate between locals and foreign 'artists,' the island's scorching heat and mounting garbage lead to deadly outcomes. The premise might seem bizarre, and indeed it is, yet it's penned with a quiet, terrifying elegance that's typical of Karapanou's work. This story seeps into your pores and makes for restless nights. It's simultaneously terrifying and a poignant critique of the friction that emerges when tradition meets external influence.
4. Outline, by Rachel Cusk
Outline, is the first book in a captivating series that weaves together surprisingly meaningful encounters experienced by the narrator during her trip to Athens and the neighbouring islands. Like so many stories of writers and artists coming to Greece and Hydra, Cusk presents a story of a solo voyage punctuated by intense encounters. This novel is deeply relatable, painful, yet filled with the authenticity of the character.
5. Long Live Man, by Gregory Corso
If you've visited me on Hydra, you know I'm passionately interested in the relationship the Beat Generation American writers had with Greece. Ginsberg, Norse, Ansen, Burroughs—all have passed through, staying or even living here for periods. Among these poets, Gregory Corso stands out as the quintessential bad boy from the Bronx. His collection of poetry, 'Long Live Man,' originally published in 1962, features the epic and eulogistic poem, 'Greece.' He writes:
Athens sky:
Like a magician’s handkerchief blue becomes red
Earth’s texture shreds
Aurora and amber grapple for dominancy —
Hydra, only isle of my touch and sight
Where came where came that skinless light ….
+1. The Journal of the Hydra Book Club
Of course, the best reading companion of the season is our Journal of the Hydra Book Club!
As Hydra has always been a mix of Greek and international intellectuals and artists meeting together to create, my partner Filip Niedenthal and I have appied this philosophy to a print medium. In Vol.1 we invited writers, artists, curators and critics to address the subject of ‘Utopia,’ featuring contributions from Malgosia Bela, Dimitrios Antonitsis, Georgia Liapi, Chris Kontos, Amanda Michalopoulou, the Deste Foundation, Etel Adnan, among others. This June, Vol. 2 will arrive with a new theme – ‘Vacation.’ We peer into the frayed edges of the strange time we refer to as vacation, with insights from 27 new contributors including Saskia de Brauw, Andreas Angelidakis, Nicolas Vamvouklis, Ariana Papademetropoulos, and Agnieszka Polska. This will surely be in all the “smartest” Zeus+Δione beach bags this summer.
