“A rigorous and sensitive account of what happened in a Greek village during the migration crisis of 2014 to 2016, when desperate refugees from Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq risked their lives to reach the nations of the European Union. This book prompts us to ask what it means to lead an ethical life and to help strangers in need. In a century in which conflict and climate will prompt ever-larger numbers of people to seek refuge, Molyvos is a profound meditation on compassion and resilience.”—Sewell Chan, editor in chief of the Texas Tribune and former editorial page editor of the Los Angeles Times
“John Webb captures the sense of trauma, shock, and disbelief as thousands of desperate people began appearing on the shores of Molyvos. His focus on the motivations and stories of rescuers on the frontlines is both a celebration of heroism and a dire wakeup call about the depth of an ongoing global crisis.”—Daniel Gashler, associate professor of history at State University of New York at Delhi
“This beautifully written book takes you into one of the biggest refugee crises Greece has witnessed in modern times. Mostly without outside help, many big-hearted Greeks neglected their jobs and saved untold numbers of refugees from drowning. As they got to know refugees, the Greeks were again energized by their determination to live a better life. A truly inspiring story!”—Deborah Kaple, author of Dream of a Red Factory: The Legacy of High Stalinism in China
“We often think of refugees and migrants as the domain of the UN, national governments, and big nonprofits such as the Red Cross. But as John Webb shows in his compassionate, well-researched book Molyvos, it’s really individuals and community groups who are the first responders to migrants arriving on their shores. These local residents act from the heart, often with few resources and sometimes are shunted aside when bigger players get involved. The question remains why some folks act with empathy and others do not. We surely need more compassion and coordination for new migration waves to come.”—Doreen Hemlock, freelance journalist and former business reporter for the South Florida Sun Sentinel
