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omnibozo22's review against another edition
3.0
Finally. The series was a significant slog. Fortunately Book Five had mostly short chapters of the repetitious rants that characterized the entire series. The Screech translation injects many British English idiomatic phrases without exact equals in sixteenth century French. Can't recall an exact example, as I'm still recovering from the onslaught of babble. It appears the Cervantes did not know of Rabelais, or at least no references to him appear in the notes on Don Quixote. Joyce was clearly familiar with G&P, especially in the form of endless lists to fit any topic that popped up. The "first" book, Gargantua, would probably be enough reading for anyone wanting to just have a taste of Rabelais. Glad i've read the series. Unlikely to ever revisit it.
karatedrummer's review against another edition
5.0
I unashamedly found this whole thing hilariously witty, even with (read: maybe because of) Rabelais' propensity for phallic, gross humor. Irreverent to the nth degree, sharp enough to back it up - a fabulously entertaining combination in any era.
ayl4's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
sleeping_while_awake's review against another edition
1.0
I didn't like it; in fact I can't remember how many times I picked this up only to put it down after a few pages and then wander off to do something else.
I enjoyed Gargantua, Book 1. It took me a bit to warm up to Rabelais, but by the end I was surprised how engrossed I was in the squabbling French countryside. But then came along Pantagruel, a scholarly, philosophical giant, who bored me to death the rest of the novel. Book 2 basically showed off how smart and wonderful Pantagruel is and how he gives sage advice. Book 3, centering around Panurge's fate of marriage really dragged the book down. Book 4 was okay, a bit better than 3. Honestly a repeat of Book 2. Book 5 interested me again. However, it is obvious Book 5 was not written by Rabelais. It is easier to read and the language is considerably dumbed down.
It was extremely repetitive. Also, Rabelais loves lists. I couldn't help play the tune to Daft Punk's "Technologic" every time I was reading through those long, long lists.
I understand the historical importance...but the plot was negligent. Not sure what I have taken away from this...
I enjoyed Gargantua, Book 1. It took me a bit to warm up to Rabelais, but by the end I was surprised how engrossed I was in the squabbling French countryside. But then came along Pantagruel, a scholarly, philosophical giant, who bored me to death the rest of the novel. Book 2 basically showed off how smart and wonderful Pantagruel is and how he gives sage advice. Book 3, centering around Panurge's fate of marriage really dragged the book down. Book 4 was okay, a bit better than 3. Honestly a repeat of Book 2. Book 5 interested me again. However, it is obvious Book 5 was not written by Rabelais. It is easier to read and the language is considerably dumbed down.
It was extremely repetitive. Also, Rabelais loves lists. I couldn't help play the tune to Daft Punk's "Technologic" every time I was reading through those long, long lists.
I understand the historical importance...but the plot was negligent. Not sure what I have taken away from this...
masterovcrabs's review against another edition
4.0
Unfortunately jumping ship early with this one. The first two books and the adjoining almanacs were an absolute riot, a colorful cornucopia of drunkenness, debauchery, violence, dazzling codpieces, and joyfully irreverent toilet humor. However, I found myself losing patience with Rabelais' terribly dated philosophy and the one note humor of the third book. (Do we really need to spend 200-something pages discussing Panurge's cuckold status?) The points where the story moved away from comedy also felt like utter slogs, all creativity seeming to have vacated the writing whenever the subject deprived Rabelais of opportunities to apply his learned wit and fascination for bodily functions.
Still, I'll go forth remembering the good times and set my rating accordingly. These adventures might not hold up as a complete body of work, but they exhibit more than enough style and creativity to make reading them at least somewhat worthwhile. In truth, Rabelais reminds me a lot of Kafka, in the sense that he's an author whose work (at least in my mind), while not holding up terribly well on its own, has served as a quintessential launching off point for writers I adore (Theroux, Joyce, and Del Paso, to cite three exceptionally pertinent examples of Rabelais' reach). Hence why you gotta respect your classics, flawed as they are, for the real good stuff wouldn't be here without 'em.
So in conclusion to this shambling apology of a review: Read your Rabelais. Just don't expect to be dazzled all the way through.
Still, I'll go forth remembering the good times and set my rating accordingly. These adventures might not hold up as a complete body of work, but they exhibit more than enough style and creativity to make reading them at least somewhat worthwhile. In truth, Rabelais reminds me a lot of Kafka, in the sense that he's an author whose work (at least in my mind), while not holding up terribly well on its own, has served as a quintessential launching off point for writers I adore (Theroux, Joyce, and Del Paso, to cite three exceptionally pertinent examples of Rabelais' reach). Hence why you gotta respect your classics, flawed as they are, for the real good stuff wouldn't be here without 'em.
So in conclusion to this shambling apology of a review: Read your Rabelais. Just don't expect to be dazzled all the way through.
cnyreader's review against another edition
3.0
There's a lot about this book that's giant. The amount of pages, the two main characters, the amount that almost everyone in the book eats and drinks, and the volume of ink spent on bodily functions- all giant. Gargantua is Pantagruel's father and most of the book is about Pantagruel's life, though we do get to know Gargantua a bit at first. A good portion, through the end, is spent on Pantagruel and his friends going in search of an answer to the question of whether his friend, Panurge, should get married. It becomes a quest, ending abruptly in a cave after getting to the Oracle of the Bottle.
At first, this was kind of fun. It's satire and very witty. But Rabelais is all over the map, no subject left unexplored, and it got a little tiresome. Perhaps this wasn't meant to be read at one go- it was published over a number of years. But now I know exactly what's being described when someone uses the adjective "Rabelaisian".
Food: a giant tub of over-buttered popcorn. At first, it's warm and yummy and you can eat it at a good clip, but soon you run into dry spots or oversaturated spots and your mouth just gets tired of chewing and it's too salty and wow, it seems like you haven't even made a DENT in it yet, but you bought it so you gotta keep going...
At first, this was kind of fun. It's satire and very witty. But Rabelais is all over the map, no subject left unexplored, and it got a little tiresome. Perhaps this wasn't meant to be read at one go- it was published over a number of years. But now I know exactly what's being described when someone uses the adjective "Rabelaisian".
Food: a giant tub of over-buttered popcorn. At first, it's warm and yummy and you can eat it at a good clip, but soon you run into dry spots or oversaturated spots and your mouth just gets tired of chewing and it's too salty and wow, it seems like you haven't even made a DENT in it yet, but you bought it so you gotta keep going...
csd17's review against another edition
1.0
I'm done done done with this book and couldn't be more excited. It's like reading one of those teenage boy comedies... the humor is all about bodily functions and (classic though it may be) it doesn't contribute much to the quality of my life. I get why those old maids in The Music Man were so stubborn about it... and I don't get why they changed the song in the newest version (the alterers obviously never read it).
Hopefully, never again will I read this.
Hopefully, never again will I read this.
sberk0612's review against another edition
2.0
I liked this book at first the writing was well done but there really is no plot and for a satire it wasn't all that amusing
horseknickers's review against another edition
2.0
I understand its importance in the history of literature, but it wasn't that enjoyable to read. Very crass, crude and, ultimately, repetitive.
2000ace's review against another edition
4.0
I read this book in French class, and I thought it was hilarious at the time. Sixteen is probably a good year to read Rabelais. My sense of humor at the time was probably much closer to his than it would be if I read it now. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for this book. Besides, how could you get tired of the codpiece jokes? This is the only book I have ever read that had any of them in it.