Odysseus: A Verse Tragedy

A long, long time ago, I read this book and it changed the way I read literature. Kazantzakis' book goes beyond writing - it is a vivid exploration of the flame that consumes man. To go back to reading the frivolous so-called literature of today almost seems pointless. I am just thankful that Kazantzakis left us with such a rich body of work to read. The libraries were full of his books twenty years ago, but today I rarely find them on any shelf. To those of us who were lucky enough to discover him early, we know that he is the best kept secret of the twentieth century.

I have two copies of this book, both well worn. I began reading it over twentyfive years ago. As others have noted, the text is so rich that one or two pages is enough, and twenty is too much to digest. I find I tend to pick it up when I am discouraged. It is always a sweet wind to stand in, inducing a sense of space, of freedom in the cosmos, that lifts me to a higher perspective. And yes the translation is stunning. It is hard to remember that it was not written in English first. I have not finished the book - I just finished book 16, of 24, recently - and I don't know what I will do for solace, and reminders of my true free nature, when I have finished it. I suppose I could read it again. I have seen nothing else like it, and have never met anyone else who is reading it. So my experience of solitude is extreme when I read it. I should note also that it seems to have a particularly male point of view. There is also a feminist in me that would like to see that perspective broadened. Yet it offers so much that is true, I have to forgive this.

This is the greatest ode to freedom ever composed. While the language is rich, the action moving, and the imagery incredible, it is the spiritual odyssey of this great book that is so compelling. For those suffering from the depression of nihilism and the suffocating coils of today's "civilization" this book is the only medicine required. I carry it everywhere I go. A few sweet words from its pages are usually enough to make the world new again. Beware to those who partake of such sweetness, for the world as seen through your eyes may not match the wonder of these pages and you will find yourself reading it again and again.

This epic poem not only describes Kazantzakis own struggle with various religions and philosophies, but becomes a key to understanding many of his other major works such as Last Temptation, Zorba, St. Francis, and Buddha. Also one of the most amazing reads in the 20th century!

This epic poem, much longer than Homer's original, was, for me, a very long read. Not because it's difficult, per se, but because Kazantzakis's language drips with honey--like baklava. I cannot read more than ten pages at a time because the writing (even in translation) is so incredibly rich...Kazantzakis describes the crescent moon as an ivory comb drawn through night's black hair. The reader needs time, again and again, to put the poem aside, to absorb and revel in what one has just read (and after four readings, the above remains as true as it did during the first reading). The "Odyssey" is sensual, passionate, hallucinatory and immensely/intensely spiritual, Kazantzakis's Odysseus so compelling that one is not startled when Death himself, while stalking Odysseus, falls asleep and dreams of being alive...dreams of being Odysseus. "The Last Temptation of Christ" and "Zorba the Greek" notwithstanding, "The Odyssey: A Modern Sequel" is not only Kazantzakis's best work, it rivals the best of Joyce, Hemingway, Pynchon, and Cary; only Durrell's "Alexandria Quartet" is as rich in language and as lovingly written, but Durrell's masterpiece is fiction, of course, not poetry. Only Homer himself has composed a work so valid and so vivid--not only for his own time, but for all time to come.