Johann Christian Friedrich Hölderlin (1770 — 1843) was a German philosopher, lyric poet, and novelist who managed to synthesize the spirit of ancient Greece in his poetic works. The novel "Hyperion, or The Hermit in Greece" can be considered an autobiography in letters sent by the character Hyperion primarily to his friend Bellarmin and to Diotima. The text is set in ancient Greece, but even 200 years after it was written, the words describing invisible forces, conflicts, beauty, and hope remain relevant. Who has not felt Hyperion's utopian longing for harmony with nature and God, free from alienation? "Hyperion" is part of the collection "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die," edited by Peter Boxall.