„From the first moment I felt like we knew each other for a long time. We talked like old friends. We teased each other, as people who are not afraid of being misunderstood, do. A rare virtue that I realized almost immediately: all first acted and then spoke. In the country where I live (Greece), words are superfluous and deeds follow; sometimes words remain orphaned, not accompanied by the expected deeds.”

With this short but concise introduction, the Greek writer Sofia Nikolaidou began her speech, on the occasion of her first visit to Bucharest, in the winter of 2019, invited by Nostos Cultural Association of Greeks in Romania, for the presentation of her literary activity to the Romanian and Greek public.

The debut novel for translation and adaptation into Romanian „Tonight we have no friends” – confesses the author – „associates the historical adventure of a country, of my country, with the real life”.

It unfolds over a century of almost contemporary history. It talks about things that we know well in Europe: foreign occupation, collaborationism, the academic hierarchy that sometimes shatters destinies, politics, but also the bloodshed, which forces us, even more than ideas, to choose the camp.

Greeted with enthusiasm by the critics at the appearance, Sofia Nikolaidou’s novel covers several decades of modern Greek history, from the years of Nazi occupation to the demonstrations in December 2008.

A gallery of characters from all facets of life, from simple people to academics, PhD students, German occupiers and of all ages, from schoolchildren, students to grandparents, are the actors of a drama that unfolds at a fast pace and invites the reader to go breathlessly through it, till the last page.

The scene of the collective drama, as well as the personal dramas of the protagonists, is the city of Thessaloniki, the second city of Greece, Thessaloniki in the war years, with the Nazi camp and the deserted Jewish quarter, with the church of Hagia Sofia transformed into a school, but also the city of Thessaloniki of the 80s and of the first decade of the new century, the city of students and teachers from the famous Aristotle University.

„I hope that for the Romanian reader, who has felt or heard from his parents about the horrors that have happened in his country, many of them will seem familiar to him and will urge him to reflect.

Also, from the time we used to live in caves until today, when we launched on Mars, not much has changed: we fall in love, we hate, we seek the good, do the evil, reach out for compassion, hug, fight. Our clothes and houses may have changed, but our soul, our human essence, our mineral self still retains something of the thrill of old people who gathered around the fire to listen to a story.

So, let me tell you a story…”

Few words about the author:

Sofia Nikolaidou studied Classical Philology at Aristotle University in Thessaloniki, where she also received her doctorate.

Among the distinctions received is the State Prize for Literature given to a writer who promotes dialogue on sensitive social topics, awarded in 2015 for the work “Today, good as well”.

Anamaria Diaconescu, Director HRCC

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