Homer's Where The Heart Is: Two journalists, one crazy dog and a love affair with Greece (The Peloponnese Series) Paperback – 1 May 2015

Having read Marjory's first book, and loved it, I was eager to follow her Greek and adventures with Jim and the adorable Wallace. We find them having moved to a bigger house, not too far away from their original village. Keeping in touch with old neighbours and friends, the delightful Fonteini, it is lovely to see their friendships blossom and strengthen. Marjory intersperses her story with her time in Athens back in the 70s, as a young woman setting out in life, where she was an Au Pair to a Greek family.The Greek economy is in dire trouble at this time, with job losses, pension, and wages cuts and in some instances, not being paid at all. Marjory portrays the deepening crisis and its impact on her friends and neighbours in a sympathetic and caring way, they all pull together in times of need.There are plenty of laugh-aloud moments, along with sad heart pulling times, all interspersed with historical facts. I had to laugh at some of Wallace's antics, the Zina escape, the beach incident, and his time on the island, covered in ticks and trying to sneak him back into the apartment hoping the owner will not notice the spotty dog, fortunately, all ended well.There is also sadness as Wallace falls ill, baffling everyone as his tests all come back as normal. Finally, after further extensive tests, treatments, and X-rays, diagnosed with ulcers they have to attend the Animal clinic in Athens. He is such a loveable little fellow and has a wonderful presence filled with the love of life and adventure, as long as there are no loud noises of course. Unfortunately, due to family illness, they had to cut their stay short and say a very sad goodbye to their friends and return to the UK, promising Fonteini that they would return.Marjory writes with a deep passion and you can feel their love of Greece, this resonates throughout the book. I can highly recommend this and am looking forward to following their journey in book 3.

I have enjoyed immensely the first travel memoir by Marjory McGinn, Things Can Only Get Feta, so when I was offered a free copy of the sequel in return for an honest review, I jumped at the chance. I had been looking forward to hearing how life has been away from the author’s beloved village of Megali Mantineia, and also, how the adorable pet, Wallace, got along with the fierce big dog in the new house. Last, I yearned to devour further details from the author’s interaction with the quirky locals, and especially Foteini, who is very close to my heart. Where it came to these expectations, the book delivered one hundred per cent. However, the feel of this book is entirely different. There isn’t much lightheartedness, plus it seemed to concentrate a lot on the crisis, containing accounts of political developments which I felt were in too much detail at times.In this book, I was intrigued to find a second timeline too, about the experiences of the author as a young girl in Athens in the 70s during the dreary junta. These accounts were very interesting, but also serious at times, so readers should be aware this is not your average lighthearted travel book. The author is very talented and has relayed the happenings in both timelines in a wonderful, highly descriptive way, and it has all been very interesting to read. However, for the reasons explained, I am giving this book 4-stars and not top marks, otherwise I feel I’d be unfair to the first volume that was an utter delight to read.I would recommend to any readers who haven’t read ‘Things Can Only Get Feta’, to read that first, and only then to try this volume.

Having just read Things Can Only Get Feta by Marjory McGinn and absolutely loving it I must confess that this second book in the series seriously tugged at my heartstrings! This book finds Marjory, Jim and the lovable pooch Wallace having moved to a larger house not far from their first home in a rural Greek village. This time we learn about the author’s time living in Athens during the Military Junta as well as her marvellous descriptions of their present life in Greece. It was lovely to see that the friendship with the villagers developed and grew. It was good to see Foteini and others still feature! There’s plenty to make you smile, or even laugh aloud. I’m thinking of the beach escapade with Wallace and Foteini at the supermarket as a couple of examples. Sadly, the Greek economy at this time was in trouble and Marjory describes the deepening crisis and the impact it has on her Greek friends with a great deal of sympathy and admiration for their stoical outlook on life. I love the historical information and throughout her love of Greece and its people are evident. Unfortunately, family problems mean they have to leave Greece and return to the UK. I have to confess the poignant chapter describing their departure brought a tear to my eye. Wonderful writing and I’m so happy to discover there’s another book in the series.

This is Marjory's second book and a masterpiece, I loved the first book and whilst this is the sequel, it has a stand alone quality too if you haven't read the first one. This travel memoir, is really brought to life with the personal account of Marjory's time working in Athens as a teenager in the '70s and the up to date account of her time spent in Rural Greece with her partner and "Wee" Wallace, her lovable furry friend. It is an accurate account of life as it is currently in Greece and I feel the flashback chapters add depth to illustrate how Marjory's love affair with Greece came about and is still going strong.There is plenty of humour, with the "Tails" of Wallace, which will make you laugh out loud at some of his antics. If you are a dog lover you will be able to relate to this.This book will be a hard act to follow, but I know that will happen in due course and when it does, rest assured if will be on my "Must Read" list.I too can relate to your affection towards Greece and her people, I visited first in the mid '70s and Greece is still under my skin, thank you for sharing your story I have really enjoyed it. My only sadness was finishing it!