Theodoros Tsiakilos is set to deliver a presentation on his book “Journey to Prasino of Arcadia. What I heard, learned and remember’, delving deep into the history of his village of origin this Sunday in Melbourne.
The presentation is organised by the Hellenic Writers’ Association of Australia and the Prasino Association of Melbourne at 2pm on Sunday in the hall of the Panarcadian Association of Melbourne and Victoria ‘O Kolokotronis’ at 570 Victoria Street, North Melbourne.
Among the speakers for the event will also be writer Nikos Piperis and journalist Sotiris Hatzimanolis, with Odysseas Kripotos to serve as MC.
The book covers the work of Theodoros Tsiakilos, a resident of Melbourne since 1985, as he has carefully collected historical, ethnological, folklore and linguistic data and recorded a journey through the beautiful Arcadian village of yesterday and today.
The author captures in his book the history of his village of origin, ensuring a lasting memory is recorded.
The book includes poems written by a then Year 9 student, Galanogiannis (aka Yannis Katsimalis) during the 1938-39 school year, as well as the diary of Kostas Tsiakilos, written when he was a Year 5 student in 1965.
It also features a collection of photos as well as a dictionary listing words (Turkish, Venetian, Slavic, Arvanitic) and expressions of the region.
Tsiakilos stressed that the goal of the book is to allow readers to go back in time and learn about the history of the village that is from a bygone era.
“It is an attempt to bridge the past with the present with scarce material from oral and written testimonies for the earlier years but abundant for the more recent ones,” the author said.
“For as time passes, it brings oblivion, erasing from the mind memories, events, knowledge, people, families, villages, towns, cities, nations.”
