The Stone Lions

Written by Julia Iatridis

Narrated by Yvonne zum Tobel

A young woman who survived from Smyrna Catastrophe in 1922 started her life from scratch in Greece. She did it thanks to a dream—but with an unexpected end.
***
Panoria is a young girl who was miraculously saved from the Great Fire of Smyrna, otherwise known as the Disaster of Asia Minor, in 1922.
She arrives in Athens, along with thousands of refugees, but she is alone. She lost all her family in the catastrophe of Smyrna. Young as she is, she has no choice other than becoming a servant to survive. Each house she works in is a chapter of the book. In each home, Panoria learns valuable lessons about people and society.
However, this knowledge is not easily earned. The massive explosion severely damaged her hearing during the evacuation in the harbour of Smyrna. This makes her feel lonely and isolated, even around people. So, her most trusted sense is her sight. She watches everything, and, if necessary, through keyholes, which is how she discovers a lot about her employers.
The employers tell her only what they want her to know. She picks knowledge as best as she can, such as how to save as much money as possible, little by little, and in time to make her dream come true: to build her own house with a balcony and two stone lions to support it.
She follows her dream—but with an unpredictable end.
***
• Bestselling fiction in Greece
• State Award for Literature (Greece, 1964)
• 7 editions in the Greek language until 2008
• Mini TV Series in Greece (1969–1971)
• Now available in English
***
The Stone Lions (Audiobook)
Total chapters: 14
Music composer (soundtrack): Gavin Somerset

• Language: English
• Publisher: Stergiou Limited
• Release date: Nov 13, 2019
• ISBN: 9781912315840

Julia Iatridis

Julia Iatridis (Neo Faliro, 1910-1996) Daughter of Spanish Director of Symphony Orchestras and Professor - Director of Piraeus Conservatoire for 60 years, Jose Bustinduy and Eleni Georgandopoulou. Studied music at Athens State Music School. Award for her short story on World short story competition by New York Herald in 1954. The novel Stone Lions was filmed as a serial in the Greek state television in 1969-1971 with great success. From 1950, she published approximately twenty short stories and was honoured by an award for short stories of a group of 12 writers, the State Award for the Best Greek Novel and for the Best Biography. She translated into Greek a significant number of works of Spanish writers and playwrights, with many of her works appearing in the Greek theatres. Works, like the second part of Cervantes' Don Quijote, Jimenez, Unamuno, Valle Inclan, Federico Garcia Lorca, Perez Galdos and Alejandro Casona.