Cretan Courage: The Milatos Cave and Beyond

The lively narrative includes eyewitness descriptions of Crete’s history, including massacres and attempted genocide by Turkish soldiers, death marches to slave markets, child kidnappings, mass murders, and systemic abuse of innocent women. Despite enduring unimaginable brutality, the actual events paint a vivid picture of Cretan courage and fortitude. After rebellions, revolution, and the ultimate liberation their island, the Cretans emerge with their extraordinary vitality, like a phoenix from the ashes.

The family members’ paths diverge as some gamble their lives to emigrate to the United States at the beginning of the twentieth century. As immigrants in the U.S., they endure punishing factory work and frontline injuries in wars they fight for their new country. Despite hardships, many joys and accomplishments dominate their lives. As the third generation of Greek Americans come of age in the U.S., they learn their ancestral roots, and bond with prior generations that struggled to provide them with a better life.

On the cusp of the 200-year anniversary of the historic Milatos Cave massacre, in which the author’s great-great-great-great grandfather was murdered, this book is a powerful account of the actual events and people that shaped history.