Latest News from Yiannis Books

Summer 2009 - BBC Radio 4 Imterview
On 16 May, John Waller was interviewd by John McCarthy for the BBC Radio for programme Excess Baggage. Below is a transcript of that interview. The complete programme can be heard by clicking here.

John McCarthy: John Waller didn't get there until later [than Gerald Durrell]: the 1960s in fact. The island cast the same spell on him; so much so that he built a house there and now sort of semi-lives there. He has recently produced a book with local artist Theresa Nicholas called Corfu Sketches outlining walks you can take around the island. John, how much time do you spend in Corfu?

John Waller: Spring and Autumn. In the Spring the flowers are unbelievable; in the Autumn we have a second Spring with cyclamen coming out.  nd of course the sea is warm and we have swimming ...

JMcC: You already paint a lovely picture. What was it that you really fell in love with on those early visits?

JW:  It must be the people.The Greeks are a wonderful people - they are very hospitable.Also the countryside; Edward Lear wrote about that wonderful countryside: something incredible with 3 million olive trees.  he beaches in those days were empty. Being a keen swimmer, we went to many of them. Finally the villages; the villages are an unknown secret - there are 104 of them. They are quaint; they are lived in; and they are worth visiting.

JMcC: You mentioned that when you first went there, the beaches were empty. How has the island changed in those 40 years?

JW:  With the beaches there is obviously development. But thank goodness, one of the laws is that no building can be over four storeys if it is commercial and three if it is private. There is not the major development as in other locations. On the beaches, the sand is still there and when the sun goes down, there are not so many people on the beach and I am having my glass of white wine and my plate of fried fish and it is wonderful.

JMcC: Tell me about the links with Britain and the British.

JW:  We were there from 1814 to 1864. We built the roads and the waterworks. Also cricket and ginger beer.

JMcC: Ginger beer?

JW:  Yes, ginger beer. It is the only place you will find real ginger beer made with just ginger, lemon, sugar and water; nothing else.

JMcC: Is it a good brew?

JW:  An excellent brew! I can really recommend it.

JMcC: Edward Lear, you mentioned. In the front page of your book you have a Limerick:

There was an Old Man of Corfu

Who never knew what he should do:

So he rushed up and down

Till the sun made him brown,

That bewildered Old Man of Corfu.

You have been giving us lots of things; you are not a bewildered nor old man from Corfu. Why was he there in the first place?

JW:  His health. He kept on talking about ‘that grey London'. From 1856 to 1863, just before we left, he spent most winters there, wandering the island and painting the landscapes. We know him as a Limerick writer, but he was also a wonderful landscape painter.

JMcC: Was he involved with the cricket?

JW:  I'll be honest with you. I read his letters. He never mentioned cricket once. He wasn't into that side. He was into the countryside.

JMcC: Is it a strong feature of Corfu life?

JW:  We were over there last month. The Lords and the Commons turned up to play and I am proud to say we, that's the Greeks, got a tie. It is still played in the square, the plateia, which is surrounded by the wonderful British Palace, the French Liston and the Venetian Fort. A gorgeous setting and a fair result.

JMcC: And of course it's a World Heritage Site?

JW:  Two years ago it was made a World Heritage Site. And that with the European Union summit, has changed the town from a bit of a Balkan backwater to one of the most beautiful places to walk.

JMcC: Thinking of the walks, your passion is for walking. Apart from walking around the Old Town, you have been up and down the length of the island. Describe a bit more of the island and one of the favourite villages you discovered.

JW:  We started right in the south, in that famous place called Kavos, famous for the 18-30s. Immediately we moved out of that town, we left civilisation. It was just like it was 50 or 60 years ago. Even 100 years ago because Lear wrote about it. We walked for 8 days, up the west coast, then across the north. Throughout that time, we were measuring scenery, tranquillity - which always scored a high point - and development: almost nothing in that walk amongst 3 million olive trees, which, because we have passed a law, must NOT be cut down.

JMcC: When you are walking along this tranquil landscape and you come to a little village, what is the atmosphere like?

JW:  You will always find a Café Bar for the men in the evening; you will probably find a mini-store. It is very peaceful until the festivals - the panayiri - when everyone comes out to dance and music is played. The architecture is gorgeous: the archways and the narrow alleyways, with restricted access for cars as well.

JMcC: Are the local Corfiots tolerant or resentful of the visitors and ex-pats that go there?

JW: They are very proud if a foreigner moves to their village and some have. Remember that these people have been coming year after year. They love the place and then move to the island. They are welcomed.

JMcC: Are you happy that tourists should keep going, should fewer or more go?

JW:  Everyone who has been, has got to go back to see the World Heritage Site and the countryside. They are so superb. You must go back. You will love it and you will go again and again.

JMcC: Finally, what is the most favourite Corfiot dish?

JW: Bourdetto and Bianco are the two fish dishes: one red, one white; one hot, one garlic. Fantastic.

May 2009 - Four walks around Corfu Town
A year after publication of ‘Corfu Sketches - A thirty-year journey’, which married Theresa Nicolas’ sketches of Corfu Town in years gone by with John Waller’s commentary, you can now buy a set of four of walks around Corfu Town’s World Heritage Site.

The walks, which were in the book, are in the new format more user-friendly. They are printed on A5 sheets and laminated, and present the text and maps on one side, and (mainly) a selection of Theresa’s sketches on the other, with cross references to where you’ll encounter the same scenes on the walk.

Walk 1: Along the Tourist Trail; Walk 2: To the Jewish Quarter; Walk 3: To the Old Port and the Market; Walk 4: To Campielo, the Old Town.

The set, as well as the book, is on sale at Tourmouzoglou Bookshop at 47, Nikiforou Theotoki Street in the centre of Corfu's Old Town.

September 2008 – from The Daily Mail
The Autumn Island – Avoid the summer crowds and enjoy Corfu’s Old Town in a calmer climate, says John Waller.

August 2008 – from Anglo-Hellenic Review
“With Corfu Town becoming officially a UNESCO World Heritage Site it is timely it should be chronicled through the brush, pen and pencil of Theresa Nicholas, who first came to Corfu in 1961. 

The publisher has taken the enlightened step of providing a series of carefully designed walks to bring the observer through the areas of Corfu town which Nicholas has been recording and many of which are unchanged.   

This is a remarkable book, offering testament to a lifetime lived in what Edward Lear described as one of the most beautiful places in the world.”

May 2008 – from My Kerkyra Magazine
"Two lovers of Corfu have joined forces to produce a remarkable visual record of the island, the Town, the villages and life over a period of thirty years."

"I wanted something that lovers to Corfu could take with them and see the island through the eyes of an artist, explained John Waller to Irene Vlachou"

>

May 2008 – from The Corfiot
"Corfu Sketches is not only a collection of Theresa’s record of long-gone scenes – it’s also a guide book which actively helps you track down what’s left."

"Since Corfu Town was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO two years ago, little has been done to capitalize on its new standing, nor to assist visitors in accessing the characteristics that helped give it that status.  With its walks, Corfu Sketches does both."

April 2008 – from Island Magazine
"Anyone who loves Corfu will be dying to get their hands on a copy of Corfu Sketches – A thirty-year journey. With beautifully observed sketches of Corfiot architecture and life by Theresa Nicholas, and accompanying text written by John Waller, it is meant to be used as a guide, while walking through the old town or driving through the countryside"

"All in all, a gem of a book that will re-awaken the seasoned Corfiot’s admiration for his or her home isle and stoke the visitor’s enthusiasm."

February 2008 – from Escape Magazine
"All desire to move there was dashed by their poor ability to speak Greek. Eventually they bought a tumbledown property in Koukouli.  They struggled with the rebuilding, helped by the village priest, Papas Kostas, created a garden out of jungle and joined in with the villagers to become regarded as locals"

"So please read a village renovation story which is about the real Greece: Roy Hounsell's The Papas and the Englishman – From Corfu to Zagoria."

"John Waller’s books Greek Walls – an Odyssey in Corfu and Corfu Sunset – Avrio never comes are available in all good bookshops."

January 2008 – from CV Traveller Magazine
"CV Travel is pleased to have 150 copies of the delightful Corfu Sunset – Avrio never comes donated by the author, John Waller, to give out to the first 150 clients who book to go to Greece with CV in 2008. John bought land and built his house on Corfu in 1971, and tells the stories of his life on Corfu with great humour. His other books include Greek Walls – an Odyssey in Corfu and The Papas and the Englishman – From Corfu to Zagoria. His new hardback book Corfu Sketches – A thirty-year journey costing £19.95, with over 200 sketches of Corfu Town and 30 villages by local artist Theresa Nicholas, will be available in February 2008. All books can be ordered from good bookshops."

January 2008 – A Corfu Treat
CV Travel, voted by Conde Nast Traveller Readers as their "Favourite Villa Company" and the biggest villa rental company in Corfu, features an article on Corfu Sketches in their Winter/Spring 2008 CV Traveller, which is sent to 35,000 clients over the New Year. It is titled "Corfu Treat", a perfect description of the hardback with over 200 sketches by Theresa Nicholas.

December 2007 – Top books
A search for "Corfu" on the website of Gardners Book, the UK’s largest book distributor, brings up 93 books. John Waller’s Greek Walls and Corfu Sunset are #1 and #2 by sales ranking. Roy Hounsell’s The Papas and the Englishman is rising up the ranking since its publication earlier in 2007 and now stands at #8.