A review by iamother
Don Quixote: by Miguel de Cervantes

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book is complex in the way that it allows the reader to interpret its meaning. Is it an exercise in promoting knight errantry or an attempt to dissuade people from it? The flaws of Don Quixote and his squire Sancho Panza are front and center. It shows the dynamics of society at the time given how lower class people are deemed inferior and have to follow even someone as insane as Don Quixote in hopes of a better life. But at the same time it shows that if given the opportunity as Sancho was, what they can do with that chance. Although it was quickly taken away by the same powerful forces just looking for entertainment to shake up the monotony. The book also highlights the time period in which it was written given the way it talks about women and the place (or lack thereof) of people of color. It does tend to get repetitive in the way that some of these adventures pan out and the dialogue between the knight and squire. Loved the tangent stories that didn’t deal directly with the plot. Love is a constant theme throughout. The idea of Don Quixote representing sticking with your passions despite everyone being against you resonated with me. Should we really be getting in the way of it makes someone happy to do it? Life comes with risk and Don Quixote wanted to experience it versus simply reading about it