THANOS VLEKAS

The first English translation of the only novel published (in 1855) by a Greek historian, teacher, and political figure who was profoundly critical of his culture’s idealization of the romantic figure of the rebellious “brigand.” It takes place during the immediate aftermath of the war that won Greece independence from Turkey, and is set in an impoverished village (Trivae) where a dangerous conflict develops between two brothers: hard-working, gentle Thanos and his lawless brother Tassos (who plays Cain to Thanos’s Abel). Both are memorable figures—as is their emotional mother, whose passionate identification with Tassos’s avarice and egotism drives the story toward its potent tragic conclusion. A vivid, absorbing tale, and an important literary rediscovery.