The author reveals many unknown sides of Yannis Ritsos which emerge from his autobiographical work, the gigantic "Iconostasis of Anonymous Saints." Here, for the first time we discover the unique humor of the poet, the extraordinary dreams he sees, the sexual liberation and erotic language, but at the same time, the unexpectedly devout faith in certain traditional beliefs and customs. In an exciting way this book sheds light on the character and style of Ritsos, as well as the many "simple human beings he has known in the course of his lifetime. Starting with his childhood in Monemvasia and adolescence in Gythion, Amy Mims gives us unforgetable portraits of Ritsos' Mother, Father, his exquisite sister Nina, and his inimitable tragic-comic Aunts. And she ends up with portraits of other people close to Ritsos in his maturity: his wife Falitsa, his fellow political prisoners with whom he spend so many years on "exile" islands, his everyday acquaintances in the old neighborhood near his home. But there are a few "eponymous"friends, such as the painter Tsarouhis, the writer Tatiana Milliex, the publisher Nana Kalianesi. All these characters are brilliantly counterpointed with the protagonist, Ion, (i.e. Ritsos himself) and Ritsos' alter ego, the "jester Ariostos," who as the author points out, satirizes everything and everyone.