Persian audiobook of “Zorba the Greek” released
TEHRAN – The Persian audiobook of the 1946 novel “Zorba the Greek” written by Nikos Kazantzakis has been released.
In Iran, the novel was first translated into Persian by Mohammad Ghazi and published in 1978 by Kharazmi Publication, and has since been reprinted many times.
Now, the audio version of this classic work has been produced by Maahava Institute in collaboration with Kharazmi Publication. The production features multiple voice actors and is available across all audiobook platforms, ISNA reported.
The voice cast includes Mehdi Pakdel, Reza Omrani, Sepideh Malmir, Komeil Soleymanpour, Hami Ghanbarzadeh, Iman Esfahani, Mahmoud Lavasani, and Parisa Malekzadeh, among others.
“Zorba the Greek” is the tale of a young Greek intellectual who ventures to escape his bookish life with the aid of the boisterous and mysterious Alexis Zorba. The novel was adapted into the successful 1964 film of the same name, directed by Michael Cacoyannis, as well as a stage musical and a BBC radio play.
Alexis Zorba is a fictionalized version of the mine worker George Zorbas. The novel was adapted into the Academy Award–winning 1964 film, starring Anthony Quinn as Zorba and Alan Bates. The film won three Academy Awards.
The book has been adapted many more times in languages other than English, including a 1972 German-language telemovie, and a 1987–88 ballet, “Zorba il Greco,” by Mikis Theodorakis, produced at the Verona Arena.
The classic novel explores the struggle between the aesthetic and the rational, the inner life and the life of the mind.
It is the story of two men, their incredible friendship, and the importance of living life to the fullest. Zorba, a Greek working man, is a larger-than-life character, energetic and unpredictable. He accompanies the unnamed narrator to Crete to work in the narrator’s lignite mine, and the pair develops a singular relationship. The two men couldn’t be further apart: The narrator is cerebral, modest, and reserved; Zorba is unfettered, spirited, and beyond the reins of civility. Over the course of their journey, he becomes the narrator’s greatest friend and inspiration and helps him to appreciate the joy of living.
Zorba has been acclaimed as one of the most remarkable figures in literature; he is a character in the great tradition of Sinbad the Sailor, Falstaff, and Sancho Panza. He responds to all that life offers him with passion, whether he’s supervising laborers at a mine, confronting mad monks in a mountain monastery, or embellishing the tales of his past adventures.
“Zorba the Greek” explores the beauty and pain of existence, inviting readers to reevaluate the most important aspects of their lives and live to the fullest.
SS/SAB