LoveReading Says
A lyrical blend of memoir and literary travelogue, Laura Coffey’s Enchanted Islands recounts the author’s voyage of self-discovery around myth-infused Mediterranean islands in the wake of heartbreak, after becoming immersed in a new translation of The Odyssey.
While Coffey’s journey “started with a boy, like it always does”, it’s quick to become, and lead to, so much more. First there’s news of her father’s illness, and the need to heal herself, alongside an ever-present compulsion to find the meaning of home, and to feel at home. And so, an ordinary holiday turns out to be anything but that, as Coffey extends a short trip into a six-month exploration of several magical Mediterranean islands — from Sicily and Croatia’s Korčula, to Menorca — all the while relishing the restorative power of natural landscapes that shaped epic myths, and birthed epic heroes and heroines.
Beautifully bittersweet as it balances personal experiences with sweeping, big-picture mythological scope, and intertwines raw realities with poetry and legend, Enchanted Islands is, fittingly, an enchanting memoir of love, loss and finding new directions through tumultuous seas.
Joanne Owen
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Enchanted Islands Synopsis
A real-life journey through the fantastical world of The Odyssey
It started with a boy, of course. Seeking solace from the pain of heartbreak and her father's illness, Laura Coffey embarks on what was meant to be a simple holiday. But her newfound fascination with ancient Greek myths transforms her trip into a six-month odyssey, around tiny archipelagos and mystical Mediterranean islands thought to be the setting of Odysseus's epic journey. As she chases one of the most conflicted, flawed and yet beloved heroes through his fantastical sea-kingdoms, looking for the places where geography and mythology collide, she discovers the wild beauty of the islands, and the redemptive powers of travel and nature, cold-water swimming, long hikes up mountains, and luminous star-lit skies.
But her quest to find happiness, safety and the true meaning of home is overshadowed by the deepening illness of her father. Returning as he's dying, forced to confront the very things she was running from, Laura reflects on what she has lost, how to live between story and reality, and the way we craft our own mythologies. Slipping between the mythical realm and the real world, she finds enchantment and healing in the magic of both.
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9781837995639 |
| Publication date: |
22nd May 2025 |
| Author: |
Laura Coffey |
| Publisher: |
Summersdale |
| Format: |
Paperback |
| Pagination: |
288 pages |
| Primary Genre |
Biographies & Autobiographies
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| Other Genres: |
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| Recommendations: |
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Laura Coffey Press Reviews
"A magical and hugely captivating journey - filled with such beauty, wonder and surprise. A simply marvellous read, hugely recommended" - Stephen Fry
"If you love memoir and Greek mythology, this is a delight. A spellbinding book about growing up, grieving and the gods." - Clare Pollard, author of Delphi
About Laura Coffey
Laura Coffey is a travel writer, happiest in motion. She's newly addicted to cold water swimming, has an old addiction to adventure, and loves to write about the wild beauty of the places she visits and the people she meets as she roams through the world. Her work has been published in places like Condé Nast Traveller, The Guardian and BBC Travel. She is a certified yoga teacher, solo travel enthusiast and excitable bird-nerd. When she is not writing, Laura can be found cycling across London, stretching out on her yoga mat, or best of all, planning an escape to a remote island.
Instagram: l_j_coffey
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