The White Ravens Database

Presented by   Internationale Jugendbibliothek / International Youth Library

Greek / Greece

Asphontylitēs

(Asfondilitis)

Gerokōsta, Euē (Gerokosta, Evi) (text)
Markopulos, Kōstas (Markopoulos, Kostas) (illus.)
Athēna: Kaleidoskopio (Kaleidoscope), [2017]. – 43 p.
ISBN 978-960-471-144-4

Roussos, Michalis  | Disability  | Art  | Stone carving

Reading age: 11+

White Ravens issue: 2018

OPAC

Asfondilitis, a village on the Greek island of Amorgos, is known and loved for Michalis Roussos’s naïve drawings, which are carved into the island’s rocks. Roussos was a physically disabled inhabitant of the island, who lived there in the 20th century. In this book, Evi Gerokosta retells his story in her unmistakeably gentle and generous way. Manthos grows up being loved by his parents, spending peaceful hours in his father’s fishing boat and attending lively village festivals. A severe illness at a young age then leaves him unable to walk. He finds meaning in his changed life by carving drawings into the island’s cliffs. He thereby expresses his will to live and gives voice to his innermost wishes. His stone carvings depict village musicians, beloved girls and dances, among other things, and his love for his fellow human beings also shines through. Kostas Markopoulos’ brightly coloured illustrations focus on the emotions of the protagonists while allegorical elements and simple forms reflect the harmony of the island’s nature and its inhabitants.