Taqui Altounyan (1917–2001)

"We called him Black Grandpa because of his hair to distinguish him from our White Grandpa in England"
By sally tarbox on 5 August 2017
Format: Hardcover
Taqui Altounyan's main claim to fame is being the eldest of the children who inspired family friend Arthur Ransome to write 'Swallows and Amazons.'
In this interesting memoir, she looks at her unusual heritage: father an Armenian doctor based in Aleppo, Syria; mother a member of the artistic Collingwood family, living in the Lake District.
While the author's parents settled in Aleppo, there was much travel to the UK too, visiting the grandparents and attending boarding school - and, of course, sailing on Windermere. Meanwhile back in Syria, Taqui writes of their privileged lifestyle, running their own hospital - but notes too the many Armenian refugees from the massacres, and describes what was once a beautiful city.
This book covers her young life - in the last short secion she visits Syria and E Turkey as a middle-aged woman, meeting up with some old acquaintances and describing the world she finds.
Intriguing account of a little-known part of the world.… (meer)