This picture-laden travel book explores the history, culture, geography, and climate of the largest of Greece's Ionian islands, Cephallonia. The island recently received attention because it was the setting for Louis de Berni res's best-selling novel, Corelli's Mandolin (the movie came out in April), but as the Harris brothers (Taste of the Aegean) outline here, its colorful and fascinating history should be reason enough for this sudden popularity. The island has been fought over since the Bronze Age and was the hideaway for poets Barbarossa and Lord Byron. It also has been home to many destructive earthquakes and a massacre of Italian troops by the Germans in World War II. The photographs of the dramatic landscape and fascinating people are breathtaking. The appendix includes names and addresses of museums as well as lodging information. There is also a comprehensive bibliography and an index. The result is an excellent companion for those visiting the Greek Isles and a thrill for armchair travelers and history buffs. Recommended for all public libraries. Melinda Stivers Leach, Precision Editorial Svcs., Wondervu, CO 
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.