Emerging author Emily Tsokos Purtill grew up in Perth in a Greek-Australian family and was always fascinated by the stories told by older relations who had settled in Australia. So, she turned to writing her first novel about women through time.
Matia tells the story of Sia, a young Greek woman who has emigrated from Greece to Perth in 1945 for a better life. She carries with her four prophecies and four pieces of protective jewellery – matia – one for herself, her daughter, granddaughter and great-granddaughter.
Emily’s captivating story tells of four generations and three continents, linking back and forth over 125 years from Greece to Perth to New York and back to Perth.
Reviewers have praised Matia as a richly rewarding story, a beautiful insight into the Greek way of life, its superstitions and traditions involving Greek women.
“The stories told by older family members about their early lives were so different to mine,” Emily tells Have a Go News. “I had always wanted to write a novel about generations of women.
“It took me a very long time to write, I felt there is a lot of the Greek-Australian experience that hasn’t been written about in fiction and I wanted to write it in my own way.
“When I was a child, my mum’s cousins got married, so I went to lots of Greek weddings. Two of my great-grandmothers were alive and living in Perth, I spent time with them and they were from a completely different world to me.
“My grandparents live close to me and they had migrated to Australia after World War II so I know strongly the Greek-Australian connection. I have also travelled to Greece and we still have family there, so it’s always been part of my life.”
Emily’s father’s family came from the island of Evia and her mother’s family from Kastellorizio and Rhodes. Now living in Perth, Emily has also lived in London, Vancouver, Paris and New York. She studied at the University of WA and the University of British Columbia and worked as a lawyer in Perth and Paris.
Her creative non-fiction, memoir, fiction and poetry have been awarded and published in anthologies and journals in Australia and the United States. She is a 2024 winner of the Griffith Emerging Voices competition for her essay, Know Thyself, to be published in 2025.
“Matia took about eight years to write. I was living in New York at the time I started,” Emily said. “I am so happy it has been published through the University of WA where I was a student.
“We had a lovely book launch event at Castellorizian House which is like the Greek-Australian Association and we made the food mentioned in the novel, which was really lovely.”
A busy mother of three, Emily says she felt confident about writing about food in the book.
“It’s hard to keep up with language when you don’t speak it to people, but I feel food really does travel through time.
“When you’ve stopped speaking the language there is still the food and people know how to make the recipes. It can be really special and you can share it with everyone.
“I have many recipe books and recipes like my mum and grandmother make. We sometimes do cooking together. It’s a nice way to keep traditions, even if you’re not into cooking like Athena in the book.”
Emily says she has enjoyed the book launch, reaction and reviews.
“In my other life I’m a lawyer, but I’ve put that aside for now to focus on writing. It’s time to be creative and I have a busy home life as well.”
Matia by Emily Tsokos Purtill ($34.99, UWA Publishing) is available from UWA, and all good bookstores.
