Zorba the Greek

Nikos Kazantzakis · 1883–1957 · Greece

Originally Vios kai Politeia tou Alexi Zorba (Greek)

Why it matters

A bookish narrator's mining venture in Crete becomes a duel with his foreman Zorba, whose bottomless appetite for food, women, and dance argues for living without fear or restraint. Kazantzakis's most beloved book stages flesh against spirit and never quite declares a winner.

At a glance

Plainspoken adventure narrative carrying heavy philosophical freight beneath it.