High summer in the Balkans and George East arrives in Bulgaria to investigate an apparently potty scheme to rescue a dying mountain village. While there, the eccentric travel writer gets to know an array of fascinating locals from the President Putin lookalike and Meerkat soundalike to Mr Rotavator and the man who takes his milk direct from cows. Beyond the village, George discovers much about the little-known country that Bill Bryson described as a 'near-death experience.' The book also contains historical and cultural notes and traditional recipes. In his time in Bulgaria, George finds himself falling under the spell of an ancient kingdom and its people...A Note from the publishers:George is at his best when confronted with new surroundings and Bulgaria and the Balkans caused this torrent of enthusiasm for a country untouched by commerciality and modern falseness. Though the people are poor beyond anything that the west can imagine, they welcomed him with very open arms.
Author Biography:
George East is not everyone's idea of an author. After leaving school at 16 with no qualifications, he set out on a varied career path which included (failed) Rock god, Impressionist (house) painter, plumber, welder, demolition engineer, pickled onion manufacturer, private detective, male model, lorry driver, brewer's drayman, PR and Marketing guru, magazine editor, freelance journalist, hotel manager, snooker hall owner, seamstress, night club bouncer, DJ and radio and television presenter and pub landlord. After winning the title of Britain's Worst Publican for two years running, George and his wife Donella decided to see what life across the English Channel had to offer. They bought a ruined mill on ten acres of meadows, woods, streams and mud in Normandy, and set about surviving from self-sufficiency. As they struggled to survive, George wrote a book warning other Brits about the perils of buying property in and moving to live in France. To the surprise of the Easts and the astonishment of their bank managers on both sides of the Channel, Home & Dry in France (A year in Purgatory) was a best-seller. More books about the East's adventures and travels in rural France followed.Then George turned his hand to crime fiction and wrote the Mowgley Crime series about a seedy detective in charge of Portsmouth ferry port. He based the book on his experiences in travelling to and from France, and of his time behind bars when his pub was the local for a squad of CID officers. George continues to travel and write about his experiences and divides his time between France, England and the rest of Europe writing travel and crime books, and, as he says, winkling out the best and cheapest bars and restaurants.To find out more about George and his work, his website can be found at www.george-east.net
