Today we talk about The Spirit of Europe, a book by Octavian Capatina published with our publishing house Europe Books.
Europe Books had the pleasure of interviewing the author Octavian Capatina to get to know him better, what prompted him to the writing of his book The Spirit of Europe, as well as the characteristics the audience should have to appreciate his book.
Below you can find our interview. Take a seat and enjoy your reading!!!
- What prompted you to the writing of your book?
Professionally, I have been a mathematician, an engineer (electronics), and a researcher in the fields of computing and robotics. However, my formative years (family, school, high school, university) took place under the communist regime, which exposed me to all the falsifications, horrors, and crimes of that former system. Our Romanian history was rewritten by Moscow’s proxies, so from an early age, I was confronted with falsified histories—hence a certain sensitivity to ignorance and deliberate distortions. This sensitivity and curiosity drew me toward historical documents. On the one hand, that’s the background. On the other hand, I read many histories of Europe written by British, American, French, and German authors, and I was astonished by their ignorance regarding Eastern Europe. It’s as if nothing has changed in the last 300 years ago when Voltaire wrote about Western historiography of his time: «A hundred historiographers copy these miserable tales. The dictionaries of Europe replicate them. Consult the real Turkish annals, collected by Prince Cantemir, and you will see how ridiculous all these lies are.» These incomplete and uninformed books, which ignored Europe as a whole, motivated me to offer a very, very short alternative.
- What characteristics your audience should have to appreciate your book?
I think curiosity. An audience that does not feel satisfied with simplistic conspiracy theories. An audience that asks more questions than it answers. An audience that doubts, that always tries, that checks itself, that checks others. The reader of the book could be anyone, from the younger generation or from the generations after World War II, who either doubts or believes that there was something distinct about Europe. And here, I must specify that I am not referring to geographical Europe. And I do not claim that in Europe, everyone has a European spirit. Yes, there is a glaring exception, small in extent, but non-European in spirit, that is, built on a culture of hate. Today’s audience for the book could be anyone interested in broadening their knowledge horizon, beyond the stereotypes learned in schools; stereotypes that are often repeated in encyclopedias.
- What messages did you want to convey with your book?
The perception that Europe has “languished” over the past 75 years is partly true. But its moral vein has not lost it! Subject to challenges from the East and the West, in recent years, since February 2024, Europe has been proving its superiority. Firstly, Europe has not declined, as philosophers like Oswald Spengler, Leo Frobenius, or Alois Riegl predicted a century ago. On the contrary, today—in a time of monsters like Putin, Kim, Khomeini, and others—it demonstrates great moral strength. With some will and much perseverance, alongside Canada, Australia, Japan, and Korea, it could once again become a standard-bearer of civilization. The old United Nations has proven its limits; it must be allowed to die a natural death. It cannot be reformed, because it was born immoral (the Security Council and the veto). A new United Nations is needed, and it should be in Europe. Secondly, the diversity of today’s Europeans is based on an astonishing genetic unity. However, the political and economic unity of this diversity of Europe is in itself a great gain. And thirdly, I hope I have clarified some specific points in the excerpts: The genetic history of Europeans, The “natives” and the Indo-Europeans, The question of knowledge, The long road to knowledge in medicine, Intolerance, crimes, genocides, The Vikings from the Russ tribe among the Slavs, The separation of the eastern Slavic peoples, Sometimes practice precedes the concept, The people take on the toll of sovereignty, The liberation of Moscow, The true third Rome, Changing lords, Muskovia’s awakening, An unparalleled martyr, The division of states, From forced Magyarization to genocide, Soldiers or political leaders? Self-determination, from declarations to strict voting. The anti-communism resistance in Romania, The myth of the dictatorship of the proletariat, Euroasianism, The Russian world – a world without moral, After Moldova, Chechnya, Georgia – Crimea and Donbass, The invasion of Ukraine. The genocide, Nature as an indivisible whole. Even if I do not manage to dispel certain falsehoods and myths, I at least hope to raise some questions in the reader’s mind.
- How did it feel to see your book published?
I felt a sense of fulfilment, great satisfaction. I had two editions in Romanian. I looked at each edition critically and so I grew from edition to edition. But the third edition, an English edition with international distribution, is something completely different. It’s something special. I hope it reaches as many homes as possible, I hope it gives rise to as many questions, as many discussions, agreements and disagreements as possible.
- Are you working on a new writing project you can tell us about?
One project refers to the third edition of the work The Encyclopaedia of Outstanding Romanian Personalities; another one (technical) is the Photovoltaic Roof project. In this short Romanian encyclopaedia I present from the founding myths and some collective characters to the great universal personalities (Eminescu, Enescu, Brâncuși, Grigorescu) and the fine achievements in architecture, painting, sculpture and the amazing continuity of 4-6 thousand years in ornamentation. Regarding the “Photovoltaic Roof” project, I just want to mention that I see future houses as energy autonomous as possible, in which the roofs will produce energy entirely.
Europe Books thanks the author Octavian Capatina once again for taking the time and answering our questions. We are really pleased to have walked alongside him on the editorial path that led to the publication of his book The Spirit of Europe. We wish him the best of luck for his book and for his future works.
To you, my readers, may this book full of ideas and messages capture, intrigue you and provide you with food for thought which will bring you new insights!
So, my dear reader, all I have to say is to enjoy your reading!
Your editor!