Greek Island Reads

Ever since I can remember, I have been fascinated with Ancient Greece, and the Greek Islands hold a particular interest for me. I do not know why I have such a pull towards Greece in particular, but I am sure it is partly due to my love of the sea. I dream of living within view of an ocean, and so much of Greece’s history has been shaped by the various bodies of water that surround the Islands and Mainland Greece. The iconic blue and white color palette of Santorini, Mykonos, Corfu, and so many others, is catnip to me.

I am grateful to have had the good fortune to see various museum exhibits with Grecian artifacts over the years, and as an adult living in Oregon, for several years running, I would attend the annual Greek Festival put on by a Greek Orthodox church in Portland, immersing myself in the richness of the culture, food, and music of a country I longed to visit. While I have never been to Greece, my enthusiasm and appreciation for it has never dwindled, and I am always looking for ways to connect with the Greece and its Islands that I wish I could experience in person. One of the ways I do that is through books.

Of course, there are the classic Greek myths, as well as Homer’s epics, The Iliad and The Odyssey, all of which I highly recommend for anyone who is interested in Greece, or in expanding their knowledge of world literature. Of all the books I have read that are set in Greece, the titles listed below are the ones I enjoyed the most.

The Magus by John Fowles

Fiction; published 1965

“The human race is unimportant. It is the self that must not be betrayed.”

- from The Magus

Part of what makes this book so unique are the surreal and metaphysical elements, and I do not want to spoil how it unfolds, or give any of the plot away. It takes place on a fictional Greek Island called Phraxos, which was inspired by the author’s experience living and teaching on the island of Spetses after graduating from university. The focus is on a small cast of characters, including a young Englishman named Nicholas, Alison, a beautiful Australian woman Nicholas is involved with, and a wealthy, eccentric Greek native named Maurice, who pulls them into his world of bizarre mindgames.

Between the story itself, the personalities of the characters, and the backdrop of the Greek island, this is my favorite book by John Fowles. If you enjoy engrossing psychological thrillers, with a touch of something you can’t quite put your finger on, I would suggest giving The Magus a try.

Further recommended reading by John Fowles: The Collector

Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis

Fiction; published 1946 (Greek); 1952 English translation

“Free yourself from one passion to be dominated by another and nobler one. But is that not, too, a form of slavery? To sacrifice oneself to an idea, to a race, to God? Or does it mean that the higher the model, the longer the tether of our slavery? Then we can enjoy ourselves and frolic in a more spacious arena and die without coming to the end of our tether. Is that, then, what we call liberty?”

- from Zorba the Greek

Zorba is a force of nature, and not entirely admirable, though oddly likeable. He is a larger-than-life, complex character, who has his own philosophy and moral code, stemming from life experiences both good and bad, including the death of his young son. Throughout the book, which begins on Mainland Greece and primarily takes place on the island of Crete, he imparts his late-middle-aged wisdom onto the narrator of the story, who is a young, slightly pretentious, bookish intellectual.

For me, this was one of those books I did not want to get to the end of, as I got completely immersed in the vivid world according to Zorba. If you are in the mood for a story with strong character development, poignancy, adventure, and a taste of Greek culture, this book is for you.

Further recommended reading by Nikos Kazantzakis: The Last Temptation of Christ

My Family and Other Animals (book 1 of the Corfu Trilogy) by Gerald Durrell

Autobiographical memoir; published 1956

“Each day had a tranquility, a timelessness about it so that you wished it would never end. But then the dark skin of the night would peel off and there would be a fresh day waiting for us, glossy and colorful as a child’s transfer, and with the same tinge of unreality.”

- from My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell

Sadly, I do not own a copy of this book, or any of the others in the series, and have only read it once. Durrell is a wonderful storyteller, and beautifully describes his experience of being a British child in the early 1930s who, due to his widowed mother moving the Durrell family (his mother, Gerald, and his three older siblings) to the island of Corfu, had the luxury to spend his days exploring the fauna of the island, and having various adventures, both on his own and with the colorful people he meets.

Fun fact: Durell’s love of the natural world continued through adulthood, and he became a prominent naturalist, as well as an author.

If you are looking for a light, humorous story, with lush details of a Greek island, quirky characters, and that feeling of endless, carefree days you can only experience as a child, this book will fit the bill. It stands on its own, or you can follow it up (as I did) and read the other two books in the Corfu Trilogy.

Further recommended readings by Gerald Durrell: Birds, Beasts, and Relatives (book 2), and The Garden of the Gods (book 3).

A little side note: Each of these books has been made into a film. I have never been able to find a copy of The Magus (1968), so I am not able to offer any comment on that one, but I have seen both Zorba the Greek (1964) and My Family and Other Animals (2005), both of which I would recommend. Zorba the Greek was filmed entirely on location on Crete, and the black-and-white cinematography is absolutely gorgeous. My Family and Other Animals was filmed primarily on Corfu, and the island landscape is like nothing else in this world.

I hope you found these recommendations helpful, if you are looking for a new book to get lost in. And, if you are interested in human-made art inspired by the Greek Islands, feel free to explore the offerings in by shop here. Your purchase helps to support the work I do, and I truly appreciate each one of them.