Recommended Reading - Classical Backpacking in Hellas

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Recommended Reading

Although many of you out there may not be book lovers, you will still need to invest a few dollars in some of the basic guide books if you want to make your visit to Greece relatively hassle free. I have found that the more research I do on towns and sites before I leave the better I appreciate the time I have once I get there. If you have no idea what happened at Delphi in the five centuries before Christ, two hours at the site will not benefit you in the least. That is the truth of the matter.
So, where do you start? I will list some of the best books (in my opinion) and then some other interesting ones which I have found to be helpful in enjoying the sites, museums, and culture. I make no attempts to be comprehensive (who could?). All titles shown below can also be ordered right now through the accompanying link. Enjoy!

General Travel Guides

Buy it now! The Blue Guide to Greece (ed., Robin Barber) This is the one book you absolutely, positively cannot be without. It provides you with the most cultural, historical, archaeological, and interesting information on Greece that you can find anywhere. It is thick and packed full of information. European travel guru Rick Steves says "With the Blue Guide to Greece, I had all the information I needed about any sight in Greece and never needed to hire a guide. Scholarly types actually find a faint but endearing personality hiding between the sheets of their Blue Guides." However, this is not designed to provide information on accommodations or restaurants (though it sometimes does). Also! This edition was just published last year.

Buy it now! The Blue Guide to Crete From the same series. Just as detailed information as the Guide to Greece.

Buy it now! The Rough Guide: Greece There are a number of guides similar to the Rough Guide, but I think it has the best combination of rating system, accommodation, and restaurant listings. It also lists more businesses and more small towns than most other guides. (It's relatively cheap too!) Published April 1998.

Other Rough Guides The Greek Islands (June 1998)
Corfu & the Ionian Islands (Sep. 1997)
Rhodes and the Dodecanese Plus the East (July 1996)
Crete (July 1998)

Buy it now! Let's Go 99: Greece After the Blue Guide and the Rough Guide, and if you are a student or just young at heart, I would recommend the Let's Go Greece. Written by college students for students, it has a point of view that you cannot get in the other guides. I also met a reviewer while in Greece in 1998. She was very friendly and working extremely hard to get detailed information on a small town. This is also the first year they have published a separate guide for Greece. Published December 1998.

Buy it now! Frommer's Greece on $50 a Day Another good general guide to Greece. With Frommer's and the Rough Guide I was able to piece together enough information about where I should stay and what buses to take, before I left home. Published Nov. 1997.

Buy it now! Frommer's Greece Though I didn't buy a copy of this guide, I have taken a look at it. It provides more information than Frommer's Greece on $50 a Day, but obviously focuses on more expensive locations. If you are not worried about keeping costs to a minimum, this is probably the better choice. Published Dec. 1996.
2nd edition due out in April. Order yours today here!

Buy it now! Eyewitness Guide to Greece: Athens and the Mainland For those picture book lovers out there, the Eyewitness Guides are terrific. My girlfriend bought me both guides but they are not the ideal preparation books. Their architectural cut-away drawings and photos (every page is in color) will keep you occupied for hours. If you are trying to convince that spouse into going on a vacation to Greece, go grab a copy of this one. Published May 1997.

Buy it now! Eyewitness Guide to Greece: The Islands Read the description above. This version also includes information about Athens (though not as much as the above version does).

Buy it now! Fodor's Greece Another good, inexpensive guide to Greece. I am not particularly fond of their maps, but their suggestions for hotels and restaurants are usually quite good. Published April 1997.

Archaeology and Architecture

Buy it now! The Archaeology of Greece: An Introduction (by William Biers) One of the most common textbooks used in basic archaeology courses across the country, this book is perfect for those of you who don't know much about ancient architecture or archaeology, or for those of you who just want to know more about it before you go. By the way, this one has lots of photos and diagrams; not too dry. William Biers is also a professor of mine, currently teaching a seminar on Greek sanctuaries that I am in! Paperback. Published August 1996.

Buy it now! Nemea: A Guide to the Site and the Museum (by Steve Miller) This is one of the best site guides I found in all of Greece. Written for scholars and tourists alike, it has been praised by numerous journals as a terrific example for other archaeological sites. Though Nemea is not frequently visited, it is a great site and just off the road from Corinth to Mycenae. Paperback. Published in 1990.

Visit my other page on recommended Archaeology, History, Art, and Literature recommendations. Go to other recommendations!

Literature and Culture of Modern Greece

Buy it now! Dinner with Persephone (by Patricia Storace) On my second trip to Greece, our group leader highly recommended this book. I didn't think I would enjoy it at first (not much into poetry, which Storace usually writes), but the author gave such a perceptive view of life in modern Greece that I thoroughly enjoyed it. If you are female and have never been to Greece before, this book is an absolute must. Not a travelogue though. See the highly favorable reviews here. Also available as a book on tape (abridged).

Buy it now! The Olive Grove: Travels in Greece (Lonely Planet Journeys, by Katherine Kizilos) Highly recommended, this book is in many respects like Patricia Storace's with one big exception: Kizilos's family is from Greece and her reunion with the land and her relatives predominates. Published Sept. 1997.

Buy it now! A Literary Companion to Travel in Greece (by Richard Stoneman) I have not read this book, but I have heard other people recommend it and it is available in paperback. Pretty inexpensive too. Published October 1994.

Buy it now! Greece: A Traveler's Literary Companion (ed. Artemis Leontis) I do not know much about this book, but someone brought it to my attention. Published July 1997. If anyone has any comments on this one, please let me know.

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Buy it now!	The Blue Guide to Greece (ed., Robin Barber)	This is the one book you absolutely, positively cannot be without. It provides you with the most cultural, historical, archaeological, and interesting information on Greece that you can find anywhere. It is thick and packed full of information. European travel guru Rick Steves says "With the Blue Guide to Greece, I had all the information I needed about any sight in Greece and never needed to hire a guide. Scholarly types actually find a faint but endearing personality hiding between the sheets of their Blue Guides." However, this is not designed to provide information on accommodations or restaurants (though it sometimes does). Also! This edition was just published last year.
Buy it now!	The Blue Guide to Crete	From the same series. Just as detailed information as the Guide to Greece.
Buy it now!	The Rough Guide: Greece	There are a number of guides similar to the Rough Guide, but I think it has the best combination of rating system, accommodation, and restaurant listings. It also lists more businesses and more small towns than most other guides. (It's relatively cheap too!) Published April 1998.
	Other Rough Guides	The Greek Islands (June 1998) Corfu & the Ionian Islands (Sep. 1997) Rhodes and the Dodecanese Plus the East (July 1996) Crete (July 1998)
Buy it now!	Let's Go 99: Greece	After the Blue Guide and the Rough Guide, and if you are a student or just young at heart, I would recommend the Let's Go Greece. Written by college students for students, it has a point of view that you cannot get in the other guides. I also met a reviewer while in Greece in 1998. She was very friendly and working extremely hard to get detailed information on a small town. This is also the first year they have published a separate guide for Greece. Published December 1998.
Buy it now!	Frommer's Greece on $50 a Day	Another good general guide to Greece. With Frommer's and the Rough Guide I was able to piece together enough information about where I should stay and what buses to take, before I left home. Published Nov. 1997.
Buy it now!	Frommer's Greece	Though I didn't buy a copy of this guide, I have taken a look at it. It provides more information than Frommer's Greece on $50 a Day, but obviously focuses on more expensive locations. If you are not worried about keeping costs to a minimum, this is probably the better choice. Published Dec. 1996. 2nd edition due out in April. Order yours today here!
Buy it now!	Eyewitness Guide to Greece: Athens and the Mainland	For those picture book lovers out there, the Eyewitness Guides are terrific. My girlfriend bought me both guides but they are not the ideal preparation books. Their architectural cut-away drawings and photos (every page is in color) will keep you occupied for hours. If you are trying to convince that spouse into going on a vacation to Greece, go grab a copy of this one. Published May 1997.
Buy it now!	Eyewitness Guide to Greece: The Islands	Read the description above. This version also includes information about Athens (though not as much as the above version does).
Buy it now!	Fodor's Greece	Another good, inexpensive guide to Greece. I am not particularly fond of their maps, but their suggestions for hotels and restaurants are usually quite good. Published April 1997.

Buy it now!	The Archaeology of Greece: An Introduction (by William Biers)	One of the most common textbooks used in basic archaeology courses across the country, this book is perfect for those of you who don't know much about ancient architecture or archaeology, or for those of you who just want to know more about it before you go. By the way, this one has lots of photos and diagrams; not too dry. William Biers is also a professor of mine, currently teaching a seminar on Greek sanctuaries that I am in! Paperback. Published August 1996.
Buy it now!	Nemea: A Guide to the Site and the Museum (by Steve Miller)	This is one of the best site guides I found in all of Greece. Written for scholars and tourists alike, it has been praised by numerous journals as a terrific example for other archaeological sites. Though Nemea is not frequently visited, it is a great site and just off the road from Corinth to Mycenae. Paperback. Published in 1990.
	Visit my other page on recommended Archaeology, History, Art, and Literature recommendations.	Go to other recommendations!

Buy it now!	Dinner with Persephone (by Patricia Storace)	On my second trip to Greece, our group leader highly recommended this book. I didn't think I would enjoy it at first (not much into poetry, which Storace usually writes), but the author gave such a perceptive view of life in modern Greece that I thoroughly enjoyed it. If you are female and have never been to Greece before, this book is an absolute must. Not a travelogue though. See the highly favorable reviews here. Also available as a book on tape (abridged).
Buy it now!	The Olive Grove: Travels in Greece (Lonely Planet Journeys, by Katherine Kizilos)	Highly recommended, this book is in many respects like Patricia Storace's with one big exception: Kizilos's family is from Greece and her reunion with the land and her relatives predominates. Published Sept. 1997.
Buy it now!	A Literary Companion to Travel in Greece (by Richard Stoneman)	I have not read this book, but I have heard other people recommend it and it is available in paperback. Pretty inexpensive too. Published October 1994.
Buy it now!	Greece: A Traveler's Literary Companion (ed. Artemis Leontis)	I do not know much about this book, but someone brought it to my attention. Published July 1997. If anyone has any comments on this one, please let me know.