Tra La La Publishing

Bedtime Stories
Musings of a Cynic

- This handful of stories is told through the pen of a cynical old man. As you swim in their currents of irony and humor, please strap in and hold tight to your own brand of life vest!

Just Another Man

Based on historical events during the Nazi occupation of Greece in World War II, Just Another Man traces the life journey of Andreas Varelopoulos (Yiannis in the book), who was barely eleven years old when his mountain town of Kalavryta in Peloponnesus was torched by German conquerors. His young life crushed, his faith in God shattered, Yiannis eventually travels to America where, as an adult, he sets out to fulfill his childhood vow-to find and punish the Nazi commander responsible for the genocide of Kalavryta. A dangerous and thrilling search ensues, as Yiannis, along with his wife Kathy, stakes all on delivering justice.

Combining elements of a personal memoir, love story, historical novel, and murder mystery, Just Another Man is a gripping tale that calls attention to a tragic and little-known crime.

As the author writes in his preface, "The Kalavryta massacre is told as I remember it, though some names have been changed. By expanding that horrible experience of my youth into a novel, a fragile pace has returned to me. Just Another Man is a catharsis that has abated my nightmares.

Massacres of innocent civilians by Nazis were a common occurrence in occupied lands throughout World War II. Some are only now coming to light in the public eye. Although the Kalavryta slaughter is the most heinous Nazi crime committed in the Balkans, it never captured the world's attention. Finally, in 1997, the German magazine Der Spiegel noted that for the first time a foreign court-Greek in this instance-had found the German government liable for Nazi atrocities committed in the Greek villages of Distomo and Kalavryta.

"In essence [the massacres of Kalavryta and Distomo] bear the same significance as Oradour, France, and Lidice, Czechoslovakia, where hundreds of civilians were murdered by SS troops." --Holm Sundhaussen, Berlin historian and Southeast European expert, quoted in Der Spiegel magazine

Just Another Man is a deeply touching story based on a true event in the life of author Andy Varlow-Yiannis in the book. The novel details a child's memory of the Kalavryta massacre, his vow, immigration to America, and subsequent quest to find the Nazi commander responsible for the destruction of his home town.

In August, 1998, the author, his wife, children, and grandchildren traveled to Kalavryta, Greece, to commemorate a statue commissioned by the Elios Charitable Foundation. The insert on the front cover is a sketch of this life-size bronze representing a scene of grieving women and children drenched in blood hauling the bodies of their loved ones on shredded blankets from the "Hill of Execution" to the cemetery for burial. The statue now stands in the Kalavryta schoolyard. All profits from this book will be donated to the schoolhouse, which has been designated a Greek national museum.

Andy Varlow lives with his wife Kathy in San Rafael, California. They have four children and five grandchildren

Praise for Just Another Man

"Both Kitty and I have read your manuscript, and we are mightily impressed. It is a wonderful tale, while at the same time helping to educate a lot of people about what the Nazis did in Greece-lest we forget."

Michael Dukakis former Governor of Massachusetts and 1988 Democratic nominee for the Presidency of the United States

"Once in a great while you very unexpectedly discover a book that simply captivates your interest and undivided attention. Just Another Man is such a book!"

Prof. H. Morris, New York