The Island

I began the new year by reading a fantastic novel that came highly recommended by my mom. I am in process to catch up on 'reading for fun' until grad school resumes on January 22.

The Island, by Victoria Hislop, is an incredible novel. I devoured the novel over a 3 day window and didn't want to stop reading. The story follows the life of a family that lives on Crete, in a village called Plaka. The town is located across the shore from an island called Spinalonga (which was once a Venetian strong hold with a fort, and shadow of a village still there today). Spinalonga was an active leper colony for almost a 100 year span up until the late 1950's. People afflicted with the disease were brought to the island from all of Crete and even mainland Greece, including Athenians.

The characters in the book are captivating, and the author does a fantastic job to get the reader emotionally involved from the first chapter.