Aristeia Press
UNIQUE BOOKS FOR UNIQUE MINDS
Aristeia Press is an independent publishing house for independent minds.
Aristeia Press wants to be a weapon and a tool for our readers, for those who want to fight against ignorance, meaninglessness and the prevailing nihilism overshadowing us. We will accomplish our aim by choosing books intended to help us achieve excellence.
The name Aristeia defines our mission. In Greek epic literature, Aristeia is when the hero gives his best in battle. Aristeia comes from the Greek word areté meaning excellence. Translated into modern terms it entails giving our best at all times, turning our lives into our moment of Aristeia.
To achieve excellence we need to train ourselves to attain discipline and knowledge. Paideia was the comprehensive education that boys underwent to become men. This training included physical, mental, moral and spiritual training. The ideal was to achieve perfection -what we know as virtue. Virtue comes from vir and means Man in Latin. Virility also comes from this root, and was once intimately linked to virtue. It did not have a moral connotation, but rather meant perfection and excellence. Virility is strength, potency, power and bravery – all of them qualities that define Man. In Ancient Greece, the Aristos were the best, strongest, most courageous and most skilled men, those who stood out for their integrity and for being better trained both physically and intellectually. At Aristeia Press we want to provide the necessary weapons for you to become an Aristo. Our mission is to awaken your enthusiasm (enthusiasm comes from en-theou-asthma, i.e. to have God within), strengthen your desire to improve yourself and expand the awareness of your potential.
There was a time when the ruling class was formed by the aristocracy, by those who had conquered excellence: aristos + kratos, (power or government). This form of government has ceased to exist. Today, the mission of every man is to rule himself.
Only after conquering areté or excellence can we rule our lives and become aristocrats: we are aristocrats because we master our destiny, and we do so by leaving behind everything that does not make us greater, wiser, stronger, more beautiful and honest, more manly.
The books that we read forge our character and define who we are. They are our weapons.
Welcome to Aristeia Press, the press of the Aristos.
Samantha Devin, editor and co-founder of Aristeia Press
We have created Aristeia Press because we want to see published the books we love. Books we consider must be always available for those readers who, like us, are looking for wisdom, intellectual challenges and the knowledge to create their own character and independence.
Living between London and Ibiza is a fascinating and inspiring contrast. To reach Aristeia, excellence, is a beautiful dream and a challenging goal. Today, we have the astonishing treasures of our western culture at our fingertips. It is up to us what we do with our time, our thoughts and our lives.
Samantha Devin is the author of Bilis Negra, Arcadia, Heroica and La Casa de Asterión. Her novels have been published by Planeta, Random House, Lübbe and Aristeia Press. Topophilia, one of her plays, was performed at the Rose Playhouse London. She has launched the cultural magazine La Conquista de Aristeia and is the co-founder of Aristeia Press.
Francisco Lorca has founded and managed global technology companies. He is the CEO of EthosData and the managing Director of StartupBootcamp Fin-Tech program in London. He is the co-founder of Aristeia Press.