any read Don Quixote and any words of wisdom for tackling.

mixedmama · 2007-09-17T09:35:09+00:00

I am about to start Don Quixote and if i am honest i am a little intimidated about it as it is so huge and have been trying to read a synopsis online to sort of ease me into it. Can anyone provide a really basic overview and did you like / enjoy it?

casbie · 17/09/2007 15:43

i tried reading this and i couldn't get it - honestly i tried.
got about two chapters in and didn't have a clue.

maybe you'll do better with a synopsis?

susiemj · 26/09/2007 16:25

Which translation have you got? It could make a big difference. The Penguin one I've got is actually from 1750s! There's been a modern one recently. I think I'm going to get that too. I thinkit's worth persisting with. A couple of people have told me that of all 'the books you chould read' it's the one you really should because it's enjoyable. But then I haven't read it yet....

susiemj · 26/09/2007 16:25

Which translation have you got? It could make a big difference. The Penguin one I've got is actually from 1750s! There's been a modern one recently. I think I'm going to get that too. I thinkit's worth persisting with. A couple of people have told me that of all 'the books you chould read' it's the one you really should because it's enjoyable. But then I haven't read it yet....

moonmother · 26/09/2007 16:31

sorry but I was the same as casbie,I managed to get 3 chapters in,then gave up,its one of the only books I've tried to read numerous times and never managed.

Alambil · 29/09/2007 20:13

I had to read this for uni - it was a bit of a challenge, but enjoyable enough (better than some we had to read!)

My advice is - don't think of it as one enormous book ... do you have to read it all and what for (for a lecture etc or ...?)

TBH I read some of it, went to the lecture and then read the bits I needed to make the lecture make sense!

pigletmaker · 30/09/2007 21:56

If you go for the Byron version, just take a few stanzas at a time, so you're carving it up into mini stories and can focus on the detail a lot easier. Otherwise it can be overwhelming.

Original poster

mixedmama · 04/10/2007 11:29

Lewis - I dont have to read it, just bought it as I thought I would like it, but it is huge, dont have it with me today but dont think it is the penguin version.

OP posts:

toadstool · 09/10/2007 16:13

Just dive in and make sure you don't have interruptions for a couple of chapters! Remembering it's poking fun at daft knights-in-shining-armour stories all the way through is one way to tackle it, filtered through Quijote's bizarre version of reality. This being said I found it a bit sad, really, but I guess that's the idea too.

laurliemonkey · 10/10/2007 23:28

one thing i've done when tackling more difficult books is underline sentences/passages that i find particularly interesting/intriguing /just plain weird. i find it helps focus my mind, ask questions. it took me an age to read it, but it was great when i had.

puffling · 10/10/2007 23:32

My advice is get a bookmark. I read a bit, put it down then don't know where I'm up to hence only being on the first chapter after 2 years.

ImpyChica · 11/10/2007 18:07

I recommend trying to get through a chapter at a time - that's the only way I managed it. Most chapters are only a few pages - so it made it much more manageable. It's basically two books stuck together - Cervantes had quite a gap in the middle before starting the second part - and they feel quite different. I much enjoyed the second part in fact. Go for it - it's worth it! I guess my DS will be reading it in the original Spanish in a few years (we live in Madrid) - so I might have to tackle that too!

lokka · 15/10/2007 15:36

firstly..sorry to hijack this thread..Impy..see you're in Madrid and your son is called Ryan. I also live in Madrid and my son is called Dylan..do the Spanish pronounce Ryan well? Just wondering! Sorry everyone else!

Naartjie · 16/11/2007 20:00

Hmm, this story develops slowly but I found it worth the effort and actually fairly easy to read.

It's funny too! Some of the scenes were hilarious. And the two main characters- Quixote and his little friend Sancho Panza who follows him around everywhere are so weird. :-)

Upsidedowncake · 16/11/2007 20:17

I had to read it at university but I only made it through Book 1.

But knowing what I know now, I would watch a movie about it first. Then you can feel ever so clever for getting all the in-jokes.

There's a wonderful documentary about Terry Gilliam's trying to make a movie of it, which touches on many of the themes, and might mae it easier. There's also the musical, 'The man of La Mancha', with that song 'to dream the impossible dream'.

Personally, I'd much rather read Chaucer or Shakespeare. Lots more dirty bits.

christie2 · 17/11/2007 11:29

It is quite funny and sad at the same time because in so many ways he is so deluded about himself, yet so sincere in his meaningless quest. Try it a Chapter a night so you don't get overwhelmed. It is such an important book and says so much about human nature that is worth reading. I never thought of the expression "tilting at windmills" in the same way again.

Squeakybrushes · 17/11/2007 11:38

i finished it a few months ago - the penguin translation. yes it is long but the best advice i can give you is that it's divided up into teeny weeny chapters for a reason.

I can promise once you get into the flow (quite a few chapters in, in this case) you'll love the book so much, all your worries will go out the window. Just take it slowly and press on regardless. I'm not a huge reader but i finished it in a few weeks purely becasue i couldn't put it down.

ImpyChica · 23/03/2008 07:33

Sorry Lokka - hadn't been back to check this thread (I usually kill them ) Ryan usually gets called "Riiiyaaaan" by the locals in Madrid. Since Spanish is phonetic, they like to get every syllable in!

If you ever want to meet up there's an old "anyone in Madrid" thread that you could jump on - I've met up with one (lovely) person through it so far!

Anyway, sorry for the hijack - hope you got on ok with Don Quixote, MixedMama. Impy xxx