When a long-forgotten, apartheid-era arrest record derails Sally Jane Smith’s plans for a Canadian family vacation, she packs her mom’s 1978 travel diary and sets out solo for Greece instead. As she journeys to the landmarks her mother once visited — and discovers many more — Sally immerses us in Greece’s awe-inspiring landscapes and fascinating heritage sites. She delights in absorbing the country’s rich history and connecting the dots between legend, location, and contemporary literature.

Repacking for Greece travels from an initial flashback chapter in twentieth-century South Africa to ten memorable Greek destinations: Athens and Delphi on the mainland; Nafplio, Mycenae, Epidavros, and Methana on the Peloponnese Peninsula; and the islands of Hydra, Poros, Kefalonia, and Corfu (with a side trip to Albania). “From a glimpse of Mandela at his release rally, to the sound of water splashing onto Greek stone, Sally took me on a sensory journey,” says JourneyWoman Book Club host, Wendy Brooke.

The book can be read either as a standalone story, or as a sequel to Unpacking for Greece, which was named by Greek government website Greek News Agenda as ‘Reading Greece Book of the Month’ in July 2023.

“Sally Jane Smith’s clear-eyed memoir of her travels through Greece captures serendipitous and heart-rending moments, spinning her misadventures into page-turning stories,” says Melissa Joulwan, host of the Strong Sense of Place podcast. “As she roams from Athens to Hydra — and sun-drenched, windswept points in between — she takes us on a journey through the dazzling sights of Greece and unearths her own family history. Repacking for Greece is a must-read for everyone who knows travel is the best way to get lost and to find ourselves.”

The cover of this travel-themed memoir features a very personal item: the scuffed red journal that has brought Sally closer to her mother’s memory. In the background stand the three remaining columns of Delphi’s Sanctuary of Athena Pronaia, reaching up to dawn-lit skies. Sally explains that this archaeological site was the se ng for a significant moment in her internal journey from middle-aged fear to midlife fulfilment.

“Greece is the star of this story, but the narration also follows my personal transformation while I was there,” says Sally. “My first book, Unpacking for Greece, was about letting go of personal baggage: regrets about my relationship with my mom, who died when I was in my twenties, and a deep fear of buses following a long-ago solo travel accident. The new release, Repacking for Greece, is about replenishment. It is about abandoning anxiety and finding joy.”

Sally is an immigrant Australian who has lived on five continents and visited thirty-three countries, but she gives credit to Greece for turning her into a writer. She completed a residency at Varuna, the renowned Writers’ House in Australia’s Blue Mountains, in 2018, and she has published articles in Gulf News, TripFiction, Women’s Ink! and Brevity Blog. Sally’s story of her great-great-grandmother’s extraordinary life appears in the anthology Itchy Feet: Tales of Travel and Adventure. Her exploration of travel and grief is included in the Newcastle Short Story Award Anthology 2022.

>> The book will be out on April 20. Pre-order from Amazon: kindle or paperback.
>> Read more about the author on her website.

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