This week I finished the book, ‘Zorba the Greek’ by Nikos Kazantzakis, published in 1946. Hailed as a classic, this book really was hard to put down.
The book is a tale of the narrator setting off to find fortune from mines, before setting off he meets Zorba. The book follows their journey together – and this is where the book impressed.
I’m not quite sure what happened, but I got completely lost with the storyline. At one point I had no idea where they were or what they were doing, yet I was hooked! I know I missed something, rather than it being a fault of the storyline line, yet I felt this wasn’t an issue. I wasn’t hooked to see what would happen next, I was hooked to hear the words written about Zorba.
The majority of the book follows conversations between the two characters, one a bookworm and businessman, the other an ageing man with an immense passion for himself and life. The conversations cover all aspects of life, sometimes reflecting our own deep thoughts and feelings, other times saying exactly how we wish we thought or lived. It is an easy, engaging and comforting read. It makes you feel good – Zorba makes you feel good.
At times I felt I was there in Greece, listening to Zorba talk about his love for his 2nd or 3rd wife, or hearing him play his Santuri, and for these times I did not need to know the story. Perhaps that was the main message of the story anyway, you don’t always need to know what’s happening, sometimes being in the moment with yourself and those with you is all you need for happiness and peace.
With that said, I’m still planning on watching the film just to make sure I haven’t missed anything 🙂