Description

Join Peter Fiennes as he talks about his new book – A THING OF BEAUTY : Travels in Mythical and Modern Greece. It’s a golden age for Greek myths – they crop up in novels, films and popular culture. But what’s the modern relevance of Theseus, Hera and Pandora? And what’s to be seen now at the places where heroes fought and gods once quarrelled? Peter Fiennes travels to the sites of some of the most famous Greek myths, in search of hope, beauty and a new understanding of what we have done to our world. Following in the footsteps of Pausanias – the original Greek travel guide – and inspired by the stories of Lord Byron, Mary Renault and Henry Miller, Fiennes immerses himself in Greek life and culture. He walks through landscapes – stunning and spoiled – on the trail of the dancing environmental activists and Arcadian shepherds, finds the ‘most beautiful beach in Greece’, consults the Oracle, and loses himself in the cities, remote villages and ruins of this storied land. ‘There’s an infectious enthusiasm and self-deprecating authority to Fiennes’s insights and he’s a most agreeable companion.’ The GUARDIAN. PETER FIENNES is the author of the critically-acclaimed Footnotes, Oak and Ash and Thorn, and To War with God. As the publisher for Time Out, he nurtured a lifelong obsession with old guidebooks, creating award winning city guides, walking books and titles about Britain’s countryside and seaside. This event is part of the LitFest Boundaries season.