Cirrus@Austlit

'This is the true story of a vivacious Aussie Greek girl. At twenty years of age she has managed to avoid an arranged Greek marriage, despite the horror and disappointment of her family who clearly think she is mad. Throughout the narrative, Alexandra bring to life the beauty, smells and vibrancy of life on the Greek islands, where she escapes to. She is passionate, funny and honest. ' (Publisher's blurb)

'A good Greek girl does not disobey her parents. She accepts the proxy marriage they arrange for her. She does not go to parties with her Australian girlfriends and then come home with a love bite! Above all, she does not lose her virginity! We have a saying in Greek which goes like this: Poutana zoe. Translated into English it means Life's a Bitch and what a filthy little bitch life can be if, like me, you were born female and Greek! Headstrong, opinionated and always at odds with my Greek parents, I left Australia at the age of twenty to travel to Greece, the country of my birth. There I started the long journey of reconciling the two aspects of me: my Greek tradition with my Australian way of life. Life's a Bitch is my story. It is about the dreams that go awry, the stumbles along the way and the events that can change life profoundly. It's about the Angels who mark my journey through life, protecting and rewarding me in the most extraordinary ways.' (Publisher's blurb)