The Fratricides

This is the fourth Kazantzakis novel I've read, and each time I read one it becomes my new favorite of his. The Fratricides is no exception. If you are at all familiar with his writing but have not picked up this novel, I recommend you do so. If you are unfamiliar with his writing, I suggest starting with Zorba the Greek or this novel before tackling the more complicated books like his Odyssey sequel or The Last Temptation of Christ. I will say that the ending of the Fratricides is somewhat sudden, and depending on the reader's worldview could be seen as extremely nihilistic, or alternatively as hopeful.

Fratricides takes us to a small Greek village that serves as a microcosm of much that happened all around the world in the 20th century as Communism and Socialism swept through. Sometimes through the eyes of a detached narrator, sometimes through father Yánaros' - an indomitable Greek Orthodox Priest that is often indistinguishable from Zorba - we learn how the nationalist side with their praise of country and God, and the rebels, with their romantic and naive view that they could shape a new, better world after they razed the old one to the ground justified the carnage that killed so many of their neighbors. Father Yánaros wants to know if the rebels are right in seeking for justice through revenge and for freedom through submission, but most importantly he wants to reunify Castello, his village, and he wants to reunify Greece itself.

I was not aware of this book until I discovered it on your website. Its English translation, 1964, was published after the 1957 death of the Author. I am glad to have it because I have most of the other historic fiction works of the author. Peter Conlon

Brilliant for Greeks but I wonder if those not familiar with the nuances of Greek culture and the Orthodox religion could feel the passion in this book.

Required reading but I ended up enjoying the book. Very sad content but it helped me gain a greater understanding of the Greek civil war and fight against communism.

Not the most cheerful opening paragraph of the book That I re-read recently: "The sun had set in Castello. It had flooded the rooftops and now overflowed, spilling onto the dipping, narrow back streets, pitilessly uncovering the harsh ugliness of the village. Stark and ashen, the houses were barren, stone piled on stone, their doors so low one had to stoop to enter-and within was darkness. The courtyards smelled of horse manure, goat droppings, and the heavy stench of man. Not a single house had a tree in its courtyard, or a songbird in a cage, or a flowerpot in the window, with perhaps a root of basil or a red carnation; everywhere, only stone upon stone. And the souls who lived within these stones were hard and inhospitable. Mountains, houses, people-they were all granite." From the great Cretan writer, Nikos Kazantzakis' "The Fratricides", his last work. A novel, but it could be history. It is set in northern Greece during the Greek Civil War, 1946 to 1949, when communist Greeks and their Slav accomplices tried to take over Greece. Devastation, murder, starvation, all really happened. Harry Truman saved Greece from communism. If I could come back as someone else, I would come back as a writer who could write like this man.

Perhaps the least well known of Kazantzakis' bleak beautiful epics, The Fratracides is as in-depth examination of the effects of oppression as I have discovered. The book is set in a mountain village in Greece during the Turkish occupation. While on the surface it is about a revolutionary faction and it's resistance to the occupation and the villager's resistance, and occasionally support, of that faction, the book also operates on several, more intriguing levels. It examines the different human responses to domination as clearly as any sociology book, but with characters, words, and images that worm their way around your head in a way no textbook ever could. The fatalism of the of the literally hungry violence-sick villagers, the power-hungry priest grabbing at straws, the zeal of the revolutionary leader, the sensual despair of the town Magdalene; the characters manage to function symbols of human reactions as well as fully dimensional people. Kazantzakis is the master of the life of the world vs. the life of faith dilemna and that dynamic most certainly plays out in this work, though in a different way than in most of his other writings. It is not just one person struggling with the meaning of faith, but a whole community embodying the various aspects of that particular drama. The Fratracides is, I would say, the hardest of Kazantzakis' fictional writings in the sense that he gives the reader very little to hope for. But, when you stop to think about it, how appropriate. Occupation and violence are not necessarily situations in which hope is a facile option. The writing is solid; Kazantzakis has the profound ability to distill human experience emotion into dense stones that pave the villages and hills where the action takes place. The Fratricides is unique in it's ability to be spiritual without being dogmatic, analytical without being dry, and thouroughly beautiful both in story and writing.

The life in the village revolves around the seasons, with accurate and colorful detail one senses the natural flow of "the way it should be" however there is an ominous "presence" that threatens the natural order of things ... The main characters are Father Yanaros and Captain Drakos, and the supporting cast includes, Leonidas the student, Hadjis the well-traveled one, Kyriakos, and Dimos an elderly peasant, Panagos (the barber), Kosmas, Stratis. Levi and a variety of others who feel like real people.. The struggle for freedom and the need to sustain life during oppression and occupation is intensified and illuminated. The resolution of social problems and role of religion and the church in balancing the good and evil in society is the main theme. The battle of the spirit against human frailties is Kazantzakis' constant theme ... he excels in this area. This novel exemplifies the dynamic powers of description and characterization that has won Kazantzakis world-wide acclaim. Highly recommend this book to those who want to understand the constant battle to live in the midst of oppression. Erika Borsos (erikab93)

Like other Kazantzakis books I've read, this is a terrific read. Set in the black period of Greek civil war, it is tragic like 'Eleni' but has wonderful moments of black humour. One of the books I will read again ... and probably again.

This is a novel about the Greek civil war of the post WW2 1940s. It takes place around the town of Castello on the Epirus Greek lands. The `reds' have taken to the hills; they are communist and atheist. The town and its business leaders are `blacks', fascists, being supposedly devoutly orthodox. The war between them has raged and death is abound, distilled in the diary sections of the dead young Leonidas. This is wearing the local 70 year old priest Yanaros down with where Christ and God is to allow such fighting between Brothers. His interaction with the local monastery confirms that self interest and division are making things worse. Though there are many other characters the story is really about the priest and his plan (directed by God) for reconciliation or is that capitulation? The dynamic is that we learn the rebel leader is his son, who too has his own problems. Promises and vows keep appearing through the text; who will keep their promises?. This is the fourth Kazantzakis novel I've ready and it is typical of his style. The tale is very Greek, it's tragic and poignant. I found the portrayal of Yanaros both sympathetic and challenging (i.e. his fellows are dying yet he uses, in my view, self-interested religious beliefs to justify his actions). The end is sad and I wanted to know what happened next. A quote: "God turned his face the other way, and the earth was in darkness. "An eclipse of God... an eclipse of God" I think I preferred all the other books (Zorba, Last Temptation and Christ Recrucified - see my reviews) more but this is still a very good read and perhaps a shortish example to try, if you don't know his works already, though I'd still probably suggest Zorba the Greek first.

A sad tale of civil war and the slaughter of so many people. A grim message that Christianity doesn't help to resolve conflicts when confronted with a different and more ruthless ideology..