Author Nikos A. Mantis was born in Athens, where he lives and writes. His fifth novel, Oi Tyfloi (The Blind Ones) was released in May in Greek. Mantis has been honored with the Best Novel Award for his book Agria Akropoli (Wild Acropolis) and the Athens Prize for Literature from (de)kata magazine for the novel Petra Psalidi Harti (Rock Scissors Paper).
Oi Tyfloi (The Blind Ones) follows three seemingly separate storylines: In summer 2011, Isidore seeks Sophia in the streets of troubled Athens. Kleanthis, an amateur data collector and guardian of the “Book of All,” thinks he can help him.In April 1972, Giorgos is a young warrior who is going to star in a theatrical performance, but also at the anniversary events of the Kallimarmaro dictatorship. What is it that tortures him and why his telepathic abilities that began in childhood cannot save him?In summer 1985, in the Cyclades, Nate explores his father’s sudden death in a search where terrorism, psychedelia, and an enigmatic traveler with two different-coloredeyes become inextricably tangled, altering the logical form of reality.How are all these stories connected? This multifaceted novelexplores the varied types of Greek blindness, the narrative that knows no boundaries, but also the very pleasure of narrative, where successive labyrinths are opened, never to be closed.
Petra Psalidi Harti (Rock Scissors Paper),published in 2014, highlights a country in crisis and follows Dani, Alexis, Demetra, Romeo, Indris, Phoebus, Artemis, and Nadia through the ways their lives affect one another, changing orbits irreversibly,dealing withthe no longer established certainties, in a new era. Nothing is the same as before. Fear and violence pollute life in the cities, touchingeveryone more deeply than ever. With stories of people in a country struggling to find its footsteps, the novel is about the grey present, the unsuspecting past, and the uncertain future. The characters play games with their lives among those who have nothing to lose anymore and those who haveeverything to lose.
To Chioni tou Kalokairiou (The Snow of Summer), published in 2010, asks some disturbing questions. How does a child feel when the faces of his family are mysteriously transformed into strangers? What happens when the boundaries between the familiar and the unknown dissolve? How can one live with his greatest fears? In the summer of 1983, eight-year-old Leonidas lives in a village in the Peloponnese, waiting for his mother, inexplicably long gone, to return. When she finally shows up, on his birthday, Leonidas does not recognize her. She has not only changed her behavior but also her appearance. His suspicion for her is also exacerbated by the sudden appearance of an enigmatic visitor: a strange and threatening man who watches everyone and seems to be hiding immense secrets.
The book is about memory, love and betrayal, viewed through the lens of yesterday and today.It is a novel about the weight of choices made inchildhood, the cruelty of adulthood, and the atonement that is always slow to come.
Nikos A. Mantis’ books are available in Greek online.
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