A Greek Tragedy One Day, a Deadly Shipwreck, and the Human Cost of the Refugee Crisis

by Carstensen, Jeanne

• ISBN13: 9781668083147
• ISBN10: 1668083140
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781668083161
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2025-03-25
• Publisher: Atria/One Signal Publishers
• More Book Details
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Summary

SILVER MEDAL WINNER IN NONFICTION FOR THE 95TH ANNUAL CALIFORNIA BOOK AWARDS

A 2026 FINALIST FOR THE LOS ANGELES TIMES BOOK PRIZE AND THE PEN/GALBRAITH AWARD FOR NONFICTION

Five Days at Memorial meets Into the Raging Sea in this “vivid snapshot of a broken asylum system” (Kirkus Reviews)—the gripping true story of a devastating shipwreck during the biggest refugee crisis since World War II.

On October 28, 2015, a boat meant for only a few dozen passengers capsized off the coast of the Greek island of Lesvos. Hundreds of refugees, forced in desperation onto the overloaded boat manned by armed smugglers, were tossed into a roiling sea. The resulting loss of life, the largest in a single day during the biggest refugee crisis since World War II, shocked the world.

After nearly a decade of research and interviews, investigative reporter Jeanne Carstensen has captured every detail of the dramatic twenty-four hours. This includes the recollections of the refugees’ lives before they left their homes and a full account of the courageous rescue efforts of the Greek islanders and volunteers rushing to help, even as their government and the EU failed to act. In this remarkable narrative feat, Carstensen brilliantly showcases the extraordinary heroism of ordinary people in extreme circumstances.

In a world where forced migration is on the rise, and where standing up to protect our neighbors can come at great personal risk, A Greek Tragedy challenges us to confront our collective humanity. This unforgettable testament of our times is “a crushing account of a senseless tragedy” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) and a compassionate depiction of the lengths to which a person will go to save another human being.

Author Biography

Jeanne Carstensen is an award-winning journalist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Nation, and many other publications. She covered the Syrian refugee crisis in Greece, Turkey, and Europe from 2015 to 2017 with support from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. She is a 2019 Logan Nonfiction Fellow and a 2018 Squaw Valley Writers Workshop participant, and she won a National Arts Journalism Program fellowship at Columbia University for her cultural reporting. Find out more at JeanneCarstensen.net.