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Talking to Zeus: My Year in a Greek Garden
Jane Shaw was working as a volunteer in Chelsea's famous Physic Garden when she earned a placement to work for a year on a very special organic garden in Greece. But this was to be no easy-going break in the Mediterranean. Nicknamed 'Alcatraz' by the outgoing assistant, the five-acre plot was devoid of creature comforts, perched on a steep, remote hillside that was blindingly hot in summer and freezing in winter, and overseen by a 74-year-old, passionate, mercurial eccentric English lady called Joy. On arrival, Jane is immediately drawn into the intrigue of village life, such as the ongoing feud with the nouveau riche ex-pat neighbour with a sports car, whom Joy suspects has dug an illegal bore hole to water his terraced lawns. But most of all she is beguiled by the vibrant energy of the landscape, the folklore, the food and the numerous engaging characters who flock to Joy as the wise matriarch of the locale and pay a visit to her remarkable creation. The story arcs through a year of seasons in the garden as Jane learns to love its wild beauty and to relish the hard work and care it needs. This is a charming, wildly entertaining and joyful portrait of a very special place, and will appeal to anyone who loves gardening, or who has enjoyed books such as Driving Over Lemons.
354 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
5 people are currently reading
37 people want to read
About the author
Jane Shaw
2 booksLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
December 29, 2016
I'm very happy I chose this book as my lazy read on the sofa between Christmas and New year, nursing a cold etc. This was lent to me by a friend who had picked up this ex-library book in a charity shop and recommended it to me - I'll be honest, her description didn't exactly get me that excited but I'm really pleased I accepted the book.
This is an account of a young woman's one year internship at an organic garden in Greece, around 2007/2008. I know very little about gardening or Greece but thanks to the author's excellent writing it's easy to be captivated by the colourful characters and situations that she encounters during her year. It's a gentle but intriguing tale that made me eager to find out the fate of the garden and it's eccentric caretaker, Joy.
I will definitely read more stories about 'gap years' or shorter journeys, as I find them to be very entertaining indeed.
This is an account of a young woman's one year internship at an organic garden in Greece, around 2007/2008. I know very little about gardening or Greece but thanks to the author's excellent writing it's easy to be captivated by the colourful characters and situations that she encounters during her year. It's a gentle but intriguing tale that made me eager to find out the fate of the garden and it's eccentric caretaker, Joy.
I will definitely read more stories about 'gap years' or shorter journeys, as I find them to be very entertaining indeed.
September 21, 2016
I really loved this book. I was almost ready to write it off in the first chapter- I don't really like gardening or books about travel. I was completely wrong. This was much more than that. I fell in love with Jane's life as she interned at Helikion for a year. Despite the water issues, I longed to watch the volcano sunrise, drink ouzo with Joy, and listen to Pavlos sing and play the cello.
I'm also kind of bummed that my copy was a discarded library book that only checked out once. It's my copy now.
I'm also kind of bummed that my copy was a discarded library book that only checked out once. It's my copy now.
August 5, 2013
I just LOVED this book! I just got back from a holiday in Greece so the timing was perfect. What a lovely, funny, feel-good book that just wants to make me pack up my life and go gardening in Greece, working for a batty old lady. Oh, and while I'm living the good life, take up smoking and drinking copious amounts of Ouzo!
September 9, 2013
Funny. Sad. Everything a bitter sweet experience should have.
This is a book to stir every emotion. Laughter, sadness; loneliness, friendship; hope, hopelessness; frustration, contentment; confusion, understanding. Why not give yourself one of the best treats you will ever get in life - but take a hanky .........
This is a book to stir every emotion. Laughter, sadness; loneliness, friendship; hope, hopelessness; frustration, contentment; confusion, understanding. Why not give yourself one of the best treats you will ever get in life - but take a hanky .........
May 2, 2018
Loved this!!! Read it whilst holidaying in Mykonos and it totally captivated me!
March 14, 2023
Zeus is a lion. A real no-longer-live-now-taxidermied lion. He lives in the very small outbuilding where the author resides during her sojourn in this garden that is somehow both quite remote and located just off the highway connecting Athens and the airport. Jane calls the building Alcatraz. Somedays it is scorching hot. Other days (months later) it is frigid and the pipes are frozen and she must be dug out of the snowdrift at the front door. Her boss/landlady/eventual dear friend Joy is eccentric at best and incredibly exacting. Together they labor in a 5 acre garden stocked with native plants where strict forms of water conservation and land-use are practiced.
I am not a person who knows much about flowers or plants. I can recognize orchids and lavender and iris, all of which exist in this garden, but most of the others are but semi-familiar names to me. At times, I wished I knew more about them because I knew it would have enhanced my understanding of the book, but I don't think it was a true impediment. I sympathized with Jane as the fish-out-of-water in a challenging environment, I laughed at the antics of Joy's pets, I immediately loved Pavlos the giant teddy bear man, and I grew to care and worry about Joy. I also grew to care about the fate of the garden and to understand the importance of the work they were doing on a shoestring. I know that I could not have done the physical labor involved in maintaining the garden Helikion, but I think I would have enjoyed much of the rest of the adventure. Maybe not Joy's driving, though. And definitely not daily ouzo -- I don't drink and I loathe licorice. It was nice, however, to have this experience vicariously and I would be interested in knowing what else the author has done and learned since then, more on a personal level than a professional one.
I am not a person who knows much about flowers or plants. I can recognize orchids and lavender and iris, all of which exist in this garden, but most of the others are but semi-familiar names to me. At times, I wished I knew more about them because I knew it would have enhanced my understanding of the book, but I don't think it was a true impediment. I sympathized with Jane as the fish-out-of-water in a challenging environment, I laughed at the antics of Joy's pets, I immediately loved Pavlos the giant teddy bear man, and I grew to care and worry about Joy. I also grew to care about the fate of the garden and to understand the importance of the work they were doing on a shoestring. I know that I could not have done the physical labor involved in maintaining the garden Helikion, but I think I would have enjoyed much of the rest of the adventure. Maybe not Joy's driving, though. And definitely not daily ouzo -- I don't drink and I loathe licorice. It was nice, however, to have this experience vicariously and I would be interested in knowing what else the author has done and learned since then, more on a personal level than a professional one.
April 4, 2019
This book tells the story of Jane Shaw's year in Greece as an intern gardener, working in a small garden, on a steep slope at the mercy of the hot Mediterranean sun. Jane's boss is 74-year old Joy. Joy doesn't just love the garden; for her the garden represents a microcosm of the world and of delicately balanced eco-systems. Joy has learned by watching each plant and picking up the cues it gives. The garden has become her life, and when it becomes apparent that the future of the garden is at risk, the potential impact for Joy is immense.
I became absolutely engrossed in this book and it is all the better for being a true story. Initially I found Joy's character brash and unsympathetic, but as you get to know the real Joy better, you see that the prickly exterior hides a deep, emotional person for whom the garden is everything. Meanwhile, Jane is struggling with her demon of quitting things when they get tough - and in Greece things are very tough, right from the outset.
I noticed that another reviewer had said the Greek characters were caricatures. I can only assume that Jane Shaw wrote it as it was, as reality is often more odd than fiction. I enjoyed all the characters, but it is only really Jane and Joy, and the relationship between them, which we see in any depth.
Beware that reading this book may leave you feeling guilty about using a hosepipe to water your garden!
I am fortunate to have an audio recording of this book, which sadly seems to be no longer available, but Sian Thomas' reading is just superb and I recommend it, should it be reissued.
I became absolutely engrossed in this book and it is all the better for being a true story. Initially I found Joy's character brash and unsympathetic, but as you get to know the real Joy better, you see that the prickly exterior hides a deep, emotional person for whom the garden is everything. Meanwhile, Jane is struggling with her demon of quitting things when they get tough - and in Greece things are very tough, right from the outset.
I noticed that another reviewer had said the Greek characters were caricatures. I can only assume that Jane Shaw wrote it as it was, as reality is often more odd than fiction. I enjoyed all the characters, but it is only really Jane and Joy, and the relationship between them, which we see in any depth.
Beware that reading this book may leave you feeling guilty about using a hosepipe to water your garden!
I am fortunate to have an audio recording of this book, which sadly seems to be no longer available, but Sian Thomas' reading is just superb and I recommend it, should it be reissued.
December 30, 2025
I enjoyed reading this over Christmas. 3.5 rounded up.
Here's the blurb.
Jane Shaw was working as a volunteer in Chelsea's famous Physic Garden when she earned a placement to work for a year on a very special organic garden in Greece. But this was to be no easy-going break in the Mediterranean. Nicknamed 'Alcatraz' by the outgoing assistant, the five-acre plot was devoid of creature comforts, perched on a steep, remote hillside that was blindingly hot in summer and freezing in winter, and overseen by a 74-year-old, passionate, mercurial eccentric English lady called Joy. On arrival, Jane is immediately drawn into the intrigue of village life, such as the ongoing feud with the nouveau riche ex-pat neighbour with a sports car, whom Joy suspects has dug an illegal bore hole to water his terraced lawns. But most of all she is beguiled by the vibrant energy of the landscape, the folklore, the food and the numerous engaging characters who flock to Joy as the wise matriarch of the locale and pay a visit to her remarkable creation. The story arcs through a year of seasons in the garden as Jane learns to love its wild beauty and to relish the hard work and care it needs. This is a charming, wildly entertaining and joyful portrait of a very special place, and will appeal to anyone who loves gardening, or who has enjoyed books such as Driving Over Lemons.
Here's the blurb.
Jane Shaw was working as a volunteer in Chelsea's famous Physic Garden when she earned a placement to work for a year on a very special organic garden in Greece. But this was to be no easy-going break in the Mediterranean. Nicknamed 'Alcatraz' by the outgoing assistant, the five-acre plot was devoid of creature comforts, perched on a steep, remote hillside that was blindingly hot in summer and freezing in winter, and overseen by a 74-year-old, passionate, mercurial eccentric English lady called Joy. On arrival, Jane is immediately drawn into the intrigue of village life, such as the ongoing feud with the nouveau riche ex-pat neighbour with a sports car, whom Joy suspects has dug an illegal bore hole to water his terraced lawns. But most of all she is beguiled by the vibrant energy of the landscape, the folklore, the food and the numerous engaging characters who flock to Joy as the wise matriarch of the locale and pay a visit to her remarkable creation. The story arcs through a year of seasons in the garden as Jane learns to love its wild beauty and to relish the hard work and care it needs. This is a charming, wildly entertaining and joyful portrait of a very special place, and will appeal to anyone who loves gardening, or who has enjoyed books such as Driving Over Lemons.
June 25, 2018
This is a lovely, fairly light summer read. Having traveled a little in Greece and being a keen gardener, this appealed to me on many levels. I am uncertain as to whether I would have had the same staying power as Jane Shaw during her year at Helikion, with all hardships she had to overcome. However, the rewards were well worth it. A glorious setting, beautifully evoked, and some memorable characters lift this above the mundane travel book. One of those happy chance finds in my local library.
February 27, 2021
If you enjoy gardening, this is a great read
This is a gentle story about a year in a garden and a girl coming to terms with her past. There are no great shakes or dramatic events but it is charming, funny and insightful. It also gives one a peek into the way of live in the Greek country side.
This is a gentle story about a year in a garden and a girl coming to terms with her past. There are no great shakes or dramatic events but it is charming, funny and insightful. It also gives one a peek into the way of live in the Greek country side.
June 26, 2018
This has become one of my favourite books. Really immersive story and clevery written. You can tell the writer has a passion for plants which is a real bonus for me as a gardener! Can't recommend this book enough!
September 24, 2018
Really inspiring yet easy to read, this made me want to learn all the Latin names of the garden plants and become immersed in the world of botany. I think the author went on an incredible personal journey, in a single place for a year.
June 10, 2017
A really enjoyable read with some unique characters and a gentle story.
March 5, 2017
If you've enjoyed Chris Stewart's adventures in Andalusia then this will remind you of them. Best described as 'Exquisite'!
September 2, 2016
I finished this book wanting to know how this garden is now doing. Yes, it is a real place. Talk about the toughest, craziest, and most rewarding year of an internship. This is a great story about perseverance, patience, and friendship. I also learned tons about sustainable gardening in a drought stricken area where fresh water is at a premium. We have much to learn from the plants that know how to adapt. I'm going to read up on the issue with boreholes in Greece.
January 1, 2016
Entertaining account of a year's apprenticeship under an eccentric old lady, in her garden on a Greek hillside. Very enjoyable.
March 31, 2011
Interesting read if you enjoy gardening.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews