The Report to Greco is the key book for the life and work of Nikos Kazantzakis. It is a peculiar autobiography that contains altered or even verbatim sections from letters, diaries, notebooks, as well as excerpts from other works of his, with a novelistic character, which compose a study of ultimate problems, a story of an internal journey, the personification of his spiritual wandering.
Furthermore, this work, which Kazantzakis conceived at the peak of his life, is ultimately realized at the turning point of his existence and takes on the character of a study of death, as a "reflection" of a life full of intensity and contemplation. What interests the author here, as well as what he considers a moral obligation of every human being and his own ultimate duty, is to give an account "for the red line that marks his path among people, passions, and ideas."
Thus, Kazantzakis's personal experiences and memories inevitably become part of the collective consciousness, a common meeting place for those who share the same fate. Kazantzakis, at the sunset of his life, like another Odysseus returns to his native lands and makes the report to his general: the Report to Greco.
"So, you will find, reader, in these pages the red line, made from droplets of my blood, that marks my path among people, passions, and ideas. Every person worthy of being called a son of man carries his cross and ascends his Golgotha; many, the majority, reach the first or second step, get exhausted, collapse in the middle of the journey, and do not reach the top of Golgotha—I mean the top of their duty—to be crucified, to resurrect, and to save their soul. They lose heart, fear to be crucified, and do not know that crucifixion is the only road to resurrection; there is no other."
The new editions, with new covers and specially designed fonts, are accompanied by introductory texts and a postscript that offer more details about the work itself and the era in which it was written.
