Nikos Kazantzakis

First English translation of Nikos Kazantzakis's 1909 doctoral dissertation on Nietzsche. This book represents the first English translation of Nikos Kazantzakis's 1909 dissertation on Friedrich Nietzsche's political and legal philosophy. Before Kazantzakis became one of the best-known modern Greek writers, he was an avid student of Nietzsche's thought, discovering Nietzsche while studying law in Paris from 1907 to 1909. This powerful assessment of Nietzsche's radical political thought is translated here from a restored and authentic recent edition of the original. Its deep insights are unencumbered by the encrustations that generations of Nietzsche's admirers and detractors have deposed on the original Nietzschean corpus. The book also offers a revealing glimpse into the formative stage of Kazantzakis's thought.

A captivating retelling-newly translated-of the rise and fall of the Minoan civilization interwoven with some of ancient Greece’s most enduring myths At the Palaces of Knossos is a vivid reimagining of ancient Crete, blending history and mythology into an epic tale of heroism, love, and destiny. Set against the grandeur of the Minoan court, the novel brings to life the legendary stories of Theseus, the Minotaur, Ariadne, Daedalus, and Icarus. The story follows Theseus, the prince of Athens, who arrives in Crete as part of the annual tribute of young Athenians sent to feed the monstrous Minotaur. Determined to end this brutal cycle, he infiltrates the labyrinthine palace of Knossos, where he crosses paths with Princess Ariadne. Struggling between loyalty to her people and her love for the courageous stranger, Ariadne risks everything to help Theseus in his quest. Through the eyes of palace attendants, acrobats, and the inventor Daedalus and his son Icarus, Kazantzakis transports readers into the splendor of Minoan culture-its sacred rituals, breathtaking bull-leaping ceremonies, and vibrant city life. But as Theseus prepares to face his destiny, a tragic chain of events unfolds, leading to heartbreak, betrayal, and the downfall of a once-mighty civilization. Rich with philosophical depth and lyrical prose, At the Palaces of Knossos is more than a mythological retelling-it is a meditation on power, freedom, and the eternal struggle between fate and human will. Perfect for fans of historical fiction and Greek mythology, this novel offers a compelling journey into one of the ancient world’s most fascinating eras.

Newly translated, this classic novel is sure to delight readers of all ages as it explores the legendary conqueror’s life, ambitions, and humanity. Nikos Kazantzakis’s Alexander the Great is a biographical novel about one of antiquity’s greatest political and military leaders. In Kazantzakis’s story, Alexander of Macedonia does not conquer for conquest’s sake; instead, he seeks to spread the light of Hellenism to the known world, unite humanity through Greek ideals and culture, and bring together East and West. The story begins in Pella, the lavish capital of Macedonia, in the fourth century BCE. A teenager named Stefanos rushes to the royal stadium for a remarkable event that has drawn every male citizen of this capital city: the taming of a wild and uniquely powerful horse named Bucephalus. Relying on raw strength and force, even seasoned generals fail to subdue Bucephalus; but through skill, kindness, and insight, the fifteen-year-old Alexander is able to befriend the beast. Alexander’s symbolic taming of chaos foretells his rise to power and demonstrates the qualities he will carry with him throughout his lifelong campaign of conquest. Through the eyes of Stefanos, who becomes Alexander’s personal attendant and most trusted companion, Kazantzakis follows the Macedonian army through triumphant campaigns across Persia, Egypt, and India, greatly expanding the boundaries of the ancient Hellenic world. Kazantzakis presents Alexander not only as an ingenious military strategist but also as a reflective human being. Alexander oscillates between the human and the divine but will ultimately be betrayed by the former. Kazantzakis narrates Alexander’s struggles and conquests all the way to Babylon, where he meets his untimely death at just thirty-three years of age. This iconic novel also explores Alexander’s profound relationship with his mentor, Aristotle, who instills in him a lifelong thirst for knowledge. Alexander the Great offers a compelling blend of history, myth, and philosophy and will appeal to readers fascinated by ancient Greece, epic heroes, and humanity’s timeless quest for the meaning of life.

The life of Nikos Kazantzakis—the author of Zorba the Greek and The Last Temptation of Christ—was as colorful and eventful as his fiction. And nowhere is his life revealed more fully or surprisingly than in his letters. Edited and translated by Kazantzakis scholar Peter Bien, this is the most comprehensive selection of Kazantzakis's letters in any language. One of the most important Greek writers of the twentieth century, Kazantzakis (1883–1957) participated in or witnessed some of the most extraordinary events of his times, including both world wars and the Spanish and Greek civil wars. As a foreign correspondent, an official in several Greek governments, and a political and artistic exile, he led a relentlessly nomadic existence, living in France, Czechoslovakia, Austria, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Soviet Union, and England. He visited the Versailles Peace Conference, attended the tenth-anniversary celebration of the Bolshevik Revolution, interviewed Mussolini and Franco, and briefly served as a Greek cabinet minister—all the while producing a stream of novels, poems, plays, travel writing, autobiography, and translations. The letters collected here touch on almost every aspect of Kazantzakis's rich and tumultuous life, and show the genius of a man who was deeply attuned to the artistic, intellectual, and political events of his times.

This moving fable sees a young Greek writer set out to Crete to claim a small inheritance. But when he arrives, he meets Alexis Zorba, a middle-aged Greek man with a zest for life. Zorba has had a family and many lovers, has fought in the Balkan wars, has lived and loved - he is a simple but deep man who lives every moment fully and without shame. As their friendship develops, he is gradually won over, transformed and inspired along with the reader. Zorba the Greek, Nikos Kazantzakis' most popular and enduring novel, has its origins in the author's own experiences in the Peleponnesus in the 1920s. His swashbuckling hero has legions of fans across the world and his adventures are as exhilarating now as they were on first publication in the 1950s.'There can never be any doubt that Kazantzakis was the possessor of genius.' Sunday Telegraph

The Terrestrial Gospel is an anthology of passages selected from various books by Kazantzakis, centering on Nature and the workers of the soil. A powerful and poetic work that raises environmental awareness and calls us to compassionate action, the book contains new translations from the Greek originals to English, some original poems by Maskaleris, a Preface by Jean-Michel Cousteau, and an illuminating essay by ecologist, author, and film-maker, Michael Tobias. Love supports survival... Nikos Kazantzakis' love of Nature inspired him to write beautiful hymns to Her and to the human life rooted in the soil - as the selections for this Anthology movingly demonstrate. Having grown up on the fascinating island of Crete - close to trees, animals and wild peasants - he absorbed and retained the terrestrial life in his soul, and made it bloom in brilliant descriptions throughout all of his works. These poetic tributes are not mere "d cor" but a vital source of ever regenerative human life, biological growth, individual spirit and ecological community. It is a poetic vision that is at once communal, and global, from one of the 20th century's greatest writers.

Gottfried Grunewalds översättning av Nikos Kazantzakis Odysseia tjugofjärde sången.

Gottfried Grunewalds översättning av Nikos Kazantzakis Odysseia tjugotredje sången.

Gottfried Grunewalds översättning av Nikos Kazantzakis Odysseia tjugoandra sången.

Set before the start of the First World War, this moving fable sees a young English writer set out to Crete to claim a small inheritance. But when he arrives, he meets Alexis Zorba, a middle-aged Greek man with a zest for life. Zorba has had a family and many lovers, has fought in the Balkan wars, has lived and loved - he is a simple but deep man who lives every moment fully and without shame. As their friendship develops, the Englishman is gradually won over, transformed and inspired along with the reader. Zorba the Greek, Nikos Kazantzakis’ most popular and enduring novel, has its origins in the author’s own experiences in the Peleponnesus in the 1920s. His swashbuckling hero has legions of fans across the world and his adventures are as exhilarating now as they were on first publication in the 1950s.

Der weltberühmte und vielfach preisgekrönte Roman über ein schicksalhaftes Abenteuer auf Kreta wurde mit Anthony Quinn in der Hauptrolle zum unvergesslichen Filmklassiker: Der junge Schriftsteller Nikos ist mit seinem Leben unzufrieden und pachtet auf Kreta ein aufgelassenes Bergwerk. Doch erst die Begegnung mit dem Naturereignis Alexis Sorbas, dem Herumtreiber und Freigeist, lehrt den Ich-Erzähler, >>das Leben zu lieben und den Tod nicht zu fürchten

The inhabitants of a Greek village, ruled by the Turks, plan to enact the life of Christ in a mystery play but are overwhelmed by their task. A group of refugees, fleeing from the ruins of their plundered homes, arrive asking for protection - and suddenly the drama of the Passion becomes reality.

Kazantzakis's autobiographical novel Report to Greco was one of the last things he wrote before he died. It paints a vivid picture of his childhood in Crete, still occupied by the Turks, and then steadily grows into a spiritual quest that takes him to Italy, Jerusalem, Paris, Vienna, Berlin, Russia and the Caucasus, and finally back to Crete again. At different times Nietzshe, Bergson, Buddha, Homer and Christ dominate as his spiritual masters.

The Fratricides is about internecine strife in a village in the Epirus during the Greek civil war of the late 1940s. Many of the villagers, including Captain Drakos, son of the local priest Father Yanaros, have taken to the mountains and joined the Communist rebels. It is Holy Week and, with murder, death and destruction everywhere, Father Yanaros feels that he himself is bearing the sins of the world.