Crete: Fiction & Myth books
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Dance of the
Ariadnes - by Sharon Spencer, Paul Herron (paperback, 224 pages, February 1999)
 Review from Amazon.com:
Bettina L. Knapp, Hunter College, CUNY.
Sharon Spencer's "Dance of the Ariadnes" is a dazzling foray into the mysteries of myth as
experienced by two very modern women whose excitement and suspenseful yearnings swell with each unfolding
chapter. Readers will delight in the sequences of dream, reverie, and reality, intricately knit together in a
unique poetics of eroticism.
Mysteries in general, Aristotle wrote, were not intended to teach a doctrine, but to be felt.
Spencer's "Dance of the Ariadnes" is just that--a feast for the senses. Esoteric in nature, the word
"mystery" stems from the Greek word meaning "I make enter"; the intention being to open the
door, to make accessible what has been lying hidden or buried in darkness. Spencer's concretization of the
elusive in the word, while arresting space and time, never profanes the sacred!
Book Description
Having been abandoned by a mysterious man she'd met on the Yugoslavian island of Korchula, Miranda is set
on a course of loneliness, pent-up passion, and longing. When she sets foot on Crete, her fortunes begin to
change, as she is caught up in the web spun by the Serbian actress Divna, and her estranged husband, Dionysios.
Following the steps of mythological Greek characters, this triangle of lust and passion heads toward both
ecstasy and tragedy.
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Titles you can find in the Cretan
"Fiction" section include:
Moon Over Crete
Ariadne's Web
Still Life in Crete
The Sea Kings - The Prophecy
The island
Zorba the Greek
Secret Passages
and
many more... |
Ode to Minoa -
by Theresa C. Dintino (paperback, 192 pages, December 1999)
 Review from Amazon.com:
An engrossing book, superbly written,
couldn't put it down!
A wonderful story that deals with timeless ideas and issues of
birth, love, transition, initiation, and death. This book is a great mixture of history and fantasy of a Snake
Priestess of Minoa in the Bronze Age who has visions of the future. The imagery in the book is incredible and I
found it spellbinding.
I found myself living right along with Aureillia in her experiences of leaving childhood,
claiming her power, becoming a priestess, and birthing her child. The power of her life, ruled by the cycles of
the moon, rekindled in me an ache to have ceremonies as a part of everyday life. As a mother, it also reminded
me of the power of initiation in life, one generation to the next.
Ode to Minoa's characters are strong, confident and magical. Theresa Dintino creates male and
female characters that are equally strong; dealing timeless issues. The author is very knowledgeable about
history, ritual and ceremony and weaves it into the story in a way that I felt myself right in the Bronze Age of
Crete. (And, believe me that's not a place I've ever longed to study!)
I recommend it to anyone who likes good books! It would make a beautiful movie! |
The
Villa Ariadne - by Dilys Powell (paperback, March 2001)
 Review from Amazon.com:
A Brilliant Look at Greek Archaeology
A brilliant and somewhat off-beat look at the decades of classicists who stayed at Sir
Arthur Evans' house, Villa Ariadne, in Crete, next to the Bronze Age dig Knossos. Dilys Powell's marriage to a
young classical archaeologist brought her in contact with Sir Arthur himself and with the numerous
archaeologists in his milieu. The chapter on Sir Arthur's Victorian upbringing is perhaps the most interesting
of the book. But the death of Powell's husband and World War II plucked Powell from this magical world. After
the war, however, she recreated some of the legendary exploits of the classicists who worked for the Greek
resistance. A wonderful book for anyone interested in Greek archaeology or who has ever visited Greece.
CreteTravel.com comment:
Start to find out about Arthur Evans and you become immersed in a world that is archaeology, though
influenced by outside events. If you intend to visit Knossos or just wish for a good read which has the temper
of a novel plus an informed delivery of history and facts the book will be a feast. It will leave you informed
about Crete, Knossos and the life of its discoverer, and immersed in the experience of the place and its people.
Highly recommended. |
A Journey to Crete
- by Popi Panagis (paperback, 199 pages, December 1994)
 Review from Amazon.com:
A travelogue & adventure story about
the Greek island Crete
"The book offers lots of descriptive scenery with suggested journeys. It's a useful tourist
guide." NEAR NORTHNEWS Chicago, Illinois
"The stories are told with humor & warmth..." ATHENS NEWS (Greece's English
Language Daily Newspaper)
At last, a different approach to travel writing, combining a travelogue with story-telling.
Take "A Journey to Crete" to one of the largest Mediterranean islands that
encompasses dramatic contrasts of landscapes -- rugged mountains, valleys with upland plateaus, and beaches with
secluded coves. This book not only guides you to the best places to see in Crete, but also shows you the culture
and the character of a strong, resolute people and their land.
The uniqueness of the island provides the backdrop and the intrigue for the stories
describing the experiences of the Cretans during the Second World War. The strength and humor they used when
facing the German army, the coincidences and events, and how they used their passive resistance to discreetly
deceive the enemy and sabotage their plans. Also, how the Cretans were able to escape undetected from the
Germans at the last moment and what they encountered and overcame.
In reading these stories you will come close to the island and its people and be inspired by
the Cretans' ingenuity and resilience. As the stories unfold, every mountain, every valley, every seaside of the
island will come alive before your eyes. |
Colossus of Maroussi
- by Henry Miller (paperback, February 1988)
 Review from Amazon.com:
Maybe the finest travel book about Greece
This may be the greatest travel book ever written about Greece because it is so unpretentious
and has none of the romantic tripe that one gets with a lot Philhellenism. It is also wonderful as a narrative
of peace before the gathering storm of WWII that would consume most of Europe, including Greece. More than
anything, however, it is perhaps the finest writing that Henry Miller ever did because it is simply him
traveling around Greece, feeling damn glad to be there, enjoying the frienship of Durrell and Katzimbalis,
and taking pleasure in the wine, the sea, and the warmth of the Greek
people.
CreteTravel.com comment: Apart from being the best book Henry Miller wrote,
this is a Colossus of stunning travel writing. Henry Miller was writing in a world, in a Crete, that
superficially, no longer appears to exist. If you want the travel-emotion, the heart-string, the gut-feeling,
the soul and vibrating pulse - if you want to experience through the written word, the very life and energy that
emits like a heavenly vapour from the rocks and mountains of Crete, this is the book to read. It is not solely
speaking of Crete, but about Greece and its substance. A sizeable and memorable portion of Miller's journey was
spent in Crete. The travel you should do, the writing Miller has done, wonderfully. R.A.Ellman |
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Available only from AMAZON UK:
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 Synopsis
This book is supposed to tell not only about Crete, her awe-inspiring
long past or the plenty-fold beauty of her landscape. Above all the
author would like to give some impression of the people who live on this
island, who are in many ways still perceivably the heirs of their great
history and who live in the wonderful nature of this smallest of all
continents. On the slopes of Mount Ida shepherds live a life full of
traditions between past and present. Their proud bearing makes them look
like the princes in Minoan frescoes. How they work, celebrate and design
their lives is the main topic of this book. The text is written in
Greek, German and English. |
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