Andreas Papandreou : The Making of a Greek Democrat and Political Maverick

Greece in the 1960s produced one of Europe's arguably most controversial politicians of the post-war era. The contrarian politics of Andreas Papandreou grew out of his conflict laden re-engagement with Greece in the 1960s. Returning to Athens after 20 years in the US where he had been a rising member of the American liberal establishment, Papandreou forged a social reform-oriented, nationalist politics in Greece that ultimately put him at odds with the US foreign policy establishment and made him the primary target of a pro-American military coup in 1967. Venerated by his admirers and despised by his detractors with equal passion, the Harvard-educated Papandreou left in his wake no clear-cut answer to the question of who he was and what he stood for. Andreas Papandreou chronicles the events, struggles and ideas that defined the man's dramatic, intrigue-filled transformation from Kennedy-era modernizer to Cold War maverick. In the process the book examines the explosive interplay of character and circumstance that generated Papandreou's contentious, but powerfully consequential politics. A generation after his death and still no monument adorns Andreas Papandreou's grave at the First Cemetery of Athens. This puzzling absence exemplifies the enigma surrounding the man who was arguably the most remarkable, and certainly the most controversial Greek politician of the post-World War II era. Venerated by his admirers and despised by his detractors with equal passion, the Harvardeducated Papandreou left in his wake no clearcut answer to the question of who he was and what he stood for. Andreas Papandreou attempts to explain the dimensions and dynamics of the Papandreou enigma, narra 'Andreas Papandreou' chronicles the events, struggles and ideas that defined the man's dramatic, intrigue-filled transformation from Kennedy-era moderniser to Cold War maverick. In the process, the book examines the interplay of character and circumstance that generated Papandreou's contentious, but consequential politics