“Do you consider Kythera to be just a small rocky island off the coast of Cape Malea?”
This was the opening question posed by author, Associate Professor Con Aroney, to captivated audiences last week in both Canberra and Melbourne who had come along for the launch of his second historical novel, Bound to Two Homelands – A Kytherian Odyssey.
By the end of the evening, this question had been emphatically answered – Kythera is much more than a rocky outpost, it is an incredible island that has produced brave and resilient people with a revolutionary spirit, including two of its outstanding sons on which the book is based.
In the book, Dr Aroney, an interventional cardiologist and cardiac research scientist who is also a keen historian and loves to research and write, captures the extraordinary lives of two Kytherian immigrants – one the author’s paternal grandfather, Peter Aroney MBE, who fought bravely for his homeland and the other Constantine Aroney BEM, the only Kytherian-born dual ANZAC having fought in both world wars, including at Gallipoli, Greece and Crete for which he was awarded the British Empire Medal.
These launch events were the final leg of the Australian book tour organised by the publisher, the Kytherian World Heritage Fund (KWHF), with successful events hosted in the author’s hometown of Brisbane in September and Sydney earlier in May, as reported by The Greek Herald.
Dr Aroney plans on launching Bound to Two Homelands on Kythera in early June 2025, which can be described as a ‘nostos’ of his own to bring the poignant story of his grandfather, Peter Aroney, and Peter’s childhood friend, Constantine Aroney, full circle.
Audience members were riveted by the author’s presentation and depiction of life on Kythera and Australia in the early 20th century, and amazed by the fact Kythera ‘broke-away’ from Greece in 1917, and established the Autonomous Administration of Kythera to declare war on the Axis Powers, and the role Peter Aroney played in not only the ‘revolution,’ but also his pivotal role in the establishment of AHEPA in Australia.
The Canberra launch was held at the Hellenic Club in Woden on November 13 in conjunction with the Kytherian Association of Canberra and Districts, with a number of esteemed guests including the Ambassador of Greece to Australia, Stavros Venizelos; the High Commissioner of the Republic of Cyprus to Australia, Antonis Sammoutis; AHEPA Australia’s Supreme President Sophia Notaras; the former Chief of the Australian Defence Force, Admiral Chris Barrie AC; ACT Liberal politician and Member for Ginninderra, the Hon. Peter Cain; President of the Kytherian Association of Canberra and Districts, Fotis Samios; and the KWHF committee comprising Matina Zervos, George Vardas and Barbara Zantiotis.
Mr Samios welcomed guests and attendees and shared how much he enjoyed Bound to Two Homelands and the emotional effect it had on him, especially reading it on Kythera. Following Mr Samios, the emcee for the evening, Ms Zervos, chair of the KWHF committee and who was involved in editing the book, introduced the publishing project, and invited Admiral Barrie, who wrote the foreword, to share his thoughts.
Admiral Barrie described how, as a Kytherian (through marriage), a military man and someone who left home at an early age to seek his future, he identified with these characters and encouraged the audience to “buy this book” as it’s a great story, and as he wrote in the foreword ‘an indomitable spirit shines through in the narrative… I hope this book finds its place in people’s hearts.”
Finally, Professor Aroney took to the lectern and presented this story of bravery, pathos, enduring love and tragedy to an enthralled audience. The discussion explored how Dr Aroney’s years of research wove actual historical events, archival records and documentary evidence together with the author’s imagination to bring to life the extraordinary lives of these courageous souls.
Dr Aroney, his wife Trish, and Ms Zervos travelled to Melbourne the next day to host the final event of the Australian book tour. Held at The Greek Centre on Lonsdale Street, the intimate evening was co-hosted with the Greek Community of Melbourne.
A contingent of the small Melbourne-Kytherian community was in attendance, which was a delightful surprise considering the vast majority of the Kytherian diaspora settled in New South Wales and Queensland.
Ms Zervos was again emcee and welcomed special guests including the leader of the Kytherian Society of Melbourne, Dr Melina Mallos; Greek Community of Melbourne Board Member and Hellenic Chair at the University of Melbourne, Dr Nick Dallas, and Kalie Zervos, of the Kytherian Genealogy Project by Amalia & Kalie, the forerunners of Kytherian family history worldwide, whose research into Constantine Aroney spurred the KWHF’s involvement in publishing Bound to Two Homelands.
Ms Zervos and Amalia Samios also featured in Dr Aroney’s presentation as they had been invited earlier in the year to a graveside flag raising ceremony at Brighton Cemetery, Melbourne as part of ANZAC Day commemorations.
“It is particularly moving to be in Melbourne, the city Constantine Aroney emigrated to, he lived in and died in, sadly in obscurity” explained Ms Zervos in her introduction.
Dr Aroney presented and then Dr Dallas facilitated a Q&A with the author and the audience. An engrossing discussion ensued as audience members shared fascinating and thought-provoking questions ranging from whether Constantine Aroney engaged in the burgeoning Greek community when he first arrived, to Greek identity and how to keep the language alive in future generations.
Dr Dallas gave the vote of thanks and the evening closed with the serving of refreshments, lots of mingling and the author personally signing all copies sold.
Bound to Two Homelands is a compelling read and captures the essence of two great Kytherian lives, the role they played in securing a better future for subsequent generations, and is a testimony to the immigrants who transformed Australia in the 20th century.
Bound to Two Homelands – A Kytherian Odyssey is also available for purchase at: https://shorturl.at/2NztY
