Welcome and Yasou!

A Greek American woman is called to Greece by a prayer answered in the dark and guided by her ancestors to the island they came from — searching for her roots and finding instead a man who had already decided she was his wife — told through love letters, three oranges, and the tiny white church she ran past without knowing.

Inside the Book

“There is a Greek word — philotimo — that has no English equivalent. It means something close to love of honor, but larger than that. It means being the kind of person your family deserves.

Looking back over the summer I can see philotimo in everything the Gionteris family did. I didn’t know the word for it then. I could just feel it.”

— Chapter 17 Philotimo, Called to Greece

Meet the Author

My name is Katina Balacos Gionteris. I am a Greek-American writer from Stony Creek, Connecticut, and my life changed the summer I traveled to Plomari, my grandparents' village on the island of Lesvos and fell in love — with a place, and with a man named Manuel. My memoir Called to Greece tells the story of how one summer in Greece deepened my connection to my Greek roots and brought my grandparents to life in ways I never expected. I live in Stony Creek with my husband and our three sons — Eleftherios, Konstantinos, and Dimitrios. I am currently seeking representation for Called to Greece.

Learn More

The World of Called to Greece

  • Taverna Mouria 1997

  • Plomari Pier where the bus dropped Katerina off in 1997

  • Great Papou Niko Neris and Great Yiayia Marina Dukas - Pitrofos, Andros, Greece

  • Hotel Sapho - Plomari, Lesvos, Greece

  • Theone Olive Oil

  • Chora, Andros, Greece

  • Mykonos, Greece

Have a Question?

Whether you're a reader, a fellow Greek-American, or someone who found their way here by chance — I'd love to hear from you.