Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
I read certain parts of this book for my World Lit class but I'm counting it as read. I loved it. I'm hoping that maybe one day I can actually read the entire thing.
adventurous
challenging
funny
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Definitely preferred the second part to the first as it contained more varied action. I enjoyed parts of it, but perhaps my translation wasn't the most fun, as I wouldn't really refer to it as the best novel I've ever read. I appreciated it mostly for its history and place in the canon, as well as the story concept itself, which is wonderful.
Don Quixote was a favorite of Schopenhauer and Faulkner, reasons enough to get in deep and read the unabridged version. It's a long, good book layered with meta devices. Took me awhile to get on board with the characters, but this is one that has lived on bookshelves since Cervantes' time for a reason.
I liked this book, but I think it was a bit long. OK, it was apparently two books originally, but they put it together in one book for the translation and there were just too many crazy adventures. I definitely liked the first part better than the second part. The people in the second part were just cruel. I realize that they didn't have TV or anything back then, but surely they could have found a better way to entertain themselves.
challenging
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Listen, the thing about Don Quixote is that the story is absolutely brilliant but the book is a tough read. Cervantes was skewering the trend of shitty chivalry stories that existed at the time, so the book is full of diversions and side stories that slow all the reading down (not to mention the allusions. So many allusions).
BUT! The story is magnificent. Don Quixote de la Mancha and Sancho Panza are delightful, lovable characters, and I really felt like I grew to know them while I read. The adventures and characters they encounter in their travels are no less delightful in their own varied ways. Everything about the story is wonderful.
Part 2 is especially fun. Apparently, Cervantes took so long to finish writing that someone else wrote a part 2 for him. He got so angry that in the official part 2, he has multiple character talk about how shitty the "imposters" are, and Cervantes goes so far as to introduce a governor character for a few pages just so he could have them sign an affadavit that the other author's pair were fake versions of our heroes and that they also sucked. The first part of Don Quixote was delightful, but the second part became hilarious.
I would also highly recommend this edition. Tom Lathrop does an amazing job at making sure the reader can follow along, and understands what all of the allusions are to. And read the introduction - you'll learn about the satire and about Cervantes' anger at the other version of his story, and how it affected his story.
So, in the end: read Don Quixote, if you get the chance. It was a bittersweet day when I finished it, but it was a great day when I picked it up.
BUT! The story is magnificent. Don Quixote de la Mancha and Sancho Panza are delightful, lovable characters, and I really felt like I grew to know them while I read. The adventures and characters they encounter in their travels are no less delightful in their own varied ways. Everything about the story is wonderful.
Part 2 is especially fun. Apparently, Cervantes took so long to finish writing that someone else wrote a part 2 for him. He got so angry that in the official part 2, he has multiple character talk about how shitty the "imposters" are, and Cervantes goes so far as to introduce a governor character for a few pages just so he could have them sign an affadavit that the other author's pair were fake versions of our heroes and that they also sucked. The first part of Don Quixote was delightful, but the second part became hilarious.
I would also highly recommend this edition. Tom Lathrop does an amazing job at making sure the reader can follow along, and understands what all of the allusions are to. And read the introduction - you'll learn about the satire and about Cervantes' anger at the other version of his story, and how it affected his story.
So, in the end: read Don Quixote, if you get the chance. It was a bittersweet day when I finished it, but it was a great day when I picked it up.
Well it only took me a year, on and off, but I finally finished the complete and unabridged Don Quixote.
My low rating is not for the translation (which, from my limited frame of reference, seems peachy keen) but the story itself. I just didn't find it funny. And without humor, Quixote is kind of an uphill slog.
My low rating is not for the translation (which, from my limited frame of reference, seems peachy keen) but the story itself. I just didn't find it funny. And without humor, Quixote is kind of an uphill slog.
I tried, I really did. Just could not finish. After almost 2 weeks, I was still only about 1/3 through it. Has some funny parts, but just couldn't do the whole thing.