Title: Revolution? What is Wrong with America?
Author: Dino Hatzopoulos
Publisher: XlibrisUS
ISBN: 978-1-5245-7907-4
Pages: 120
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
Reviewed By: Susan Brown
Pacific Book Review
An autobiography reflects the remembrances and reflections of the author and gives the reader a peek into that person’s life. What we see through Mr. Hatzopoulos’ eyes is that his life was defined by his love of democracy and for the United States of America. Revolution? is his perspective, based on insights gleaned from his childhood in Greece at a time of civil war to his successful move to America as an adult, on why each person living in this country should cherish the guaranteed freedoms that come with being here.
It is a fascinating treatise on the ideology of government by the people, intermingled with Mr. Hatzopoulos’ personal journey of understanding, appreciation and defense of the USA’s political structure. It’s also a moving tribute to his mother, family and friends who guided him along the way.
The starting point of this amazing journey was Velesiotes, a small town in central Greece and the author’s birthplace, at a time when Greece was under siege during World War II. His father fought in that war and the subsequent Greek civil war, in which he lost his life. This loss shattered his family and resulted in Mr. Hatzopoulos, at the age of six, being sent to an orphanage. He spent the next eight years there, kept apart from his mother and siblings; but never completely disconnected. He says of his mother, “My Mother, in my mind and in my heart, she is one of these ‘Unknown Heroes’ who’s presence will be with me forever and she will stay there, even when I die.”
This is a remarkable statement given that they were to spend only 10 years actually in each other’s lives, the rest of the time they were separated by the Atlantic Ocean. After his dream of working for the National Railroad was dashed, followed by a stint in the Greek army, he left the country for more tropical pastures and landed in the Bahamas where he started his career in the hospitality industry. From there, the States were just a new job opportunity away and a life in his chosen new home.
As much as this autobiography is a chronicle of Mr. Hatzopoulos’ life, it is equally a platform for a call to arms, if you will, to all Americans to pay attention to the democratic process, to hold politicians accountable to the people they serve, to speak up and speak out, to vote and to take care of his beloved adopted nation. Embedded throughout this life story are the author’s opinions, viewpoints and finally the conclusion which the only way to prevent a revolution in this country is to remember that, “we, as a Nation should stop those who try or will try to take this privilege of being an American away from us to spread their ideology and to gain financially.”
I found the passion in Mr. Hatzopoulos’ words endearing. English is clearly not his native language so there were some idiosyncrasies with grammar and syntax, but his fervor and enthusiasm for the message he was trying to impart were honest and sincere. Plato, the Greek philosopher, is credited with the phrase “an unexamined life is not worth living,” a tenet clearly embraced by this modern day Greek author. It was not an easy life for Mr. Hatzopoulos. It began in adversity and, in his epilogue, we learn it is ending in the same way with a fight for his life now touched with cancer. But his attitude is inspiring, “Never regret a day in your life. Good days give happiness, bad days give experience, worst days give lessons and best days give memories.”
You’ll find all four of those sentiments wrapped up in this touching memoir.
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