Rebetika are urban folk songs of Greece, often compared to the American Blues. The book includes four essays discussing the history and characteristics of the Rebetika songs, lyrics of 54 songs in English translation with parallel Greek text.
... [A] world of hash dens, junkies, brothels and songs wherein historical figures like Socrates and Xerxes occasionally make bizarre appear-ances among the trams and hookahs, and death is still called Charos, a corruption of Charon in ancient mythology. -- The Athenian
Katharine Butterworth is the founder and director for 25 years of Study in Greece, an accredited college study program for juniors and seniors in Athens, based on contemporary Greek life, and as such the first of its kind. Katharine now lives in California. Sara Schneider studied English Language and Literature at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. She came to Greece on holiday in 1972 and stayed.