The Long Shadow

Fourteen-year-old Andrew discovers his motheras hidden diary at his grandmotheras home during a Christmas gathering. His eyes are opened to a family secret when he reads about her time as a nurse in Salonika during the First World War, and the tragic love affair she had with his father, a Greek officer who died in battle. Four years later, Andrew is compelled to visit his fatheras land and trace his roots. Whataand whomahe finds there will change his life forever. The Long Shadow is filled with descriptions of Greece and its people. Dramatic images of battle and the terrible conditions endured by the Allied Armies entrenched around Salonika in the aBirdcagea are authentic and vivid. Greek music and dance play a vital role, reconciling in Andrew the dichotomy of belonging to two very different cultures and helping him to unite them in his heart and soul.