What comes to your mind when you think of the word Transylvania, if you ponder it at all? What comes to my mind are mountains of savage beauty, ancient castles, werewolves, and witches - a land of magical obscurity. How, in short, am I to believe I will still be in Europe, on entering such a realm? I shall let you know if it's Europe or fairyland, when I get there. First, Snagov - I set out tomorrow.

Boys mystified me, although I dreamed vaguely of men.

I wondered why she craved this knowledge and found myself remembering that she was, after all, an anthropologist.

I wasn't brought up to be dazzled by money or fame.

For the first time, I had been struck by the excitement of the traveler who looks history in her subtle face.

Natalie Bakopoulos has that rare gift, the ability to imagine a traumatic historical event in the form of individual lives and ordinary details. The Green Shore is compelling, personal, and full of quietly real moments.

It was good to walk into a library again; it smelled like home.