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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I'm hyperfixated on Sun Wukong as a myth so this was a very entertaining read for me.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault
The origin of the shaggy dog story, One Piece, Naruto, Dragonball, and so much more. This is a classic that is equal parts enlightening, bonkers, bizarre and hilarious. A must-read especially if you're curious about who inspired centuries of journey tales all over the world.
[Note: This is an abridged version that translates about 1/4 of it, as the translator explains in the introduction, skipping high levels of repetition among other things.]
[Note: This is an abridged version that translates about 1/4 of it, as the translator explains in the introduction, skipping high levels of repetition among other things.]
fast-paced
Wonderful!
I first read this during a journey to China - where I visited the "Big Wild Goose Pagoda" in Xi'an. It was said to have been built to house the Buddhist sutras brought back from India by the monk Xuan Zang whose travels inspired this book!
I first read this during a journey to China - where I visited the "Big Wild Goose Pagoda" in Xi'an. It was said to have been built to house the Buddhist sutras brought back from India by the monk Xuan Zang whose travels inspired this book!
It was a fun read. Julia Lovell's translation seemed natural and was quite readable, the mark of any good translation. I appreciate the editing she apparently did on the story to make it flow better. Her introduction also brought in a lot of important background and context on the Monkey King story.
Originally a collection of oral tales of a Chinese monkey trickster character, the stories were collected and written down by a person later credited as Wu Cheng'en. The stories are quite entertaining since, as with all trickster characters, the Monkey King usually succeeds through his cleverness, except when he fails in a comedic manner. Of course, it's important to remember that all stories of anthropomorphic animals (or weather, heavenly bodies, etc) are really about people who possess human desires and reasoning.
I can see why these stories are so important in Chinese culture and why so many adaptations have been done. In translations, there's always a risk of errors or distortions being introduced by the translator, or of things being left out or changed to serve the needs of the text. Apart from learning the original language, the only hope that readers have is to put ourselves in the hands of a capable translator. Julia Lovell seems to be such a person.
Originally a collection of oral tales of a Chinese monkey trickster character, the stories were collected and written down by a person later credited as Wu Cheng'en. The stories are quite entertaining since, as with all trickster characters, the Monkey King usually succeeds through his cleverness, except when he fails in a comedic manner. Of course, it's important to remember that all stories of anthropomorphic animals (or weather, heavenly bodies, etc) are really about people who possess human desires and reasoning.
I can see why these stories are so important in Chinese culture and why so many adaptations have been done. In translations, there's always a risk of errors or distortions being introduced by the translator, or of things being left out or changed to serve the needs of the text. Apart from learning the original language, the only hope that readers have is to put ourselves in the hands of a capable translator. Julia Lovell seems to be such a person.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Fun read. Couldn’t help feeling a certain depth lacking in this adaptation and translation. Kept coming back to when I ready Quixote; I felt connected to the text and that I was reading something old. I didn’t feel that in this book which just made it feel a bit silly and YA.