The Official Book Trailer
Thursday, March 27, 2025
5:30 - 6:30 PM PDT
Jeanne Carstensen: The Human Cost of the
San Francisco, CA
A Greek Tragedy
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 crisis in the Aegean, shocked the world... READ MORE
Publishers Weekly Starred Review
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Press
“What made you want to do such a deep dive, write a whole book, on one day?” Listen to my conversation with host Deepa Fernandes.
—NYT Book Review
Scott Simon: "Lesvos is famously beautiful. But what do you remember on that afternoon of October 28, 2015? Listen to Jeanne Carstensen in conversation with NPR's Scott Simon.
"...a compelling and humane book about the disaster from as many points of view as possible — Greek, Syrian, Afghan, Iraqi, Turkish; her own — a stark reminder that people are still dying on the water.
—Radio Free Mike with Michael Scott Moore
New book ‘A Greek Tragedy’ recounts harrowing shipwreck at the height of the 2015 refugee crisis. Listen to interview with host Marco Werman
“Jeanne Carstensen’s astoundingly well-reported book suggests that when governance falters and we are plunged, metaphorically at least, into a borderless sea, rescue will depend on holding on to what we have in common.”
—Gary Isaac Wolf, The Battleground
“Journalist Carstensen debuts with a riveting blow-by-blow account of the Oct. 28, 2015, sinking […] It’s a crushing account of a senseless tragedy.”
— Publisher's Weekly, starred review
“A masterwork in reporting, and a powerful narrative.”
"Heroes and Villains Surface in a Greek Tragedy of Unimaginable Dimensions"
— Paul Wilner, Nob Hill Gazette
“Carstensen humanizes the people on board who died as well as the heroic efforts of the locals who attempted to rescue them, even as governments failed to act.”
— Alta Magazine, Ten New Books for March
"An up-close look at an ongoing calamity. Carstensen emphasizes islanders, local fishermen, and foreign volunteers who rescued many and provided food, shelter, and medical care so well that the island was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize."
More Praise
"A Greek Tragedy is a gripping, heart-wrenching tale with a huge cast, and it is essential reading for anyone hoping to understand the migrations and the injustices of our modern world."
—Héctor Tobar, author of the NYT bestseller, Deep Down Dark
​“Through a deep look into one tragic shipwreck, Carstensen vividly brings alive survivors, victims and helpers in a way that stands for the larger tragedy of which this event was a part.”
–Adam Hochschild, bestselling author of King Leopold’s Ghost
“At the time of the greatest human migration in recent history, A Greek Tragedy—tender, unsparing, meticulously researched—is an unparalleled chronicle.”
–Anna Badkhen, author of Bright Unbearable Reality
“The gripping account of a horrid maritime disaster, a beguiling saga, and an unputdownable book. This is meticulously researched, masterful reporting.
—Rabih Alameddine, award-winning author of An Unnecessary Woman and The Wrong End of the Telescope
"A gripping reconstruction that illuminates the individual lives brought together by a fatal shipwreck. Carstensen's skillful reporting shows us how love and courage survive in the face of disaster."
– Matthieu Aikins, author of The Naked Don’t Fear The Water
"This is the story of a single catastrophe at sea, but also a window into the savagery of borders writ large."
—Lauren Markham, author of The Faraway Brothers
"A gripping, engrossing page-turner. An unflinching look at one memorable day in the massive migration crisis and the impossible, life-or-death choices faced by everyone involved. These searing stories will stay with me.”
— Jessica Goudeau, author of After the Last Border
Jeanne Carstensen is an award-winning journalist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, Foreign Policy, The World, The Nation, Salon, Nautilus, and The Global Post, among other outlets. She covered the Syrian refugee crisis in Greece and Turkey with support from the Pulitzer Center and was short-listed for the Immigration Journalism Awards...
Photo: Marissa Leshnov