Product Description
Describes a comic expedition by middle-class Victorians up the Thames to Oxford. ... Read more

Product Description
Quando Thomas Lang, ex-militar de elite recebe uma proposta de 100 mil dólares para assassinar um empresário norte-americano, ele decide, imediatamente, alertar a suposta vítima - uma boa ação que não ficará impune.Em questão de horas Lang terá de se defender com uma estátua de Buda, jogar cartas com bilionários impiedosos e colocar sua vida (entre outras coisas) nas mãos de muitas mulheres fatais, enquanto tenta salvar uma linda moça e impedir um banho de sangue mundial.Encontramos nesta história muito do que se vê em um episódio de House, o mau espiríto salvador e a réplica assassina de Hugh Laurie, a serviço de uma intriga apaixonante e de um personagem que não será esquecido tão cedo. Um ator que saiba escrever bem é algo raro, mas Hugh Laurie, misturando humor com uma eficacidade hollywoodiana, faz uma entrada talentosa no mundo da literatura. ... Read more

Product Description
Es probable tener un caracter dubitativo respuestas afiladas humor demoledor e incluso asi ser una persona genial. Hugh Laurie el formidable interprete de Dr. House se ha consagrado en la television y con esta historia asombrosa en la que se evidencia su inconfundible estilo prosigue su prometedora carrera. Cuando Thomas Lang ex militar de grupos de elite recibe una propuesta de cien mil dolares para asesinar a un empresario estadounidense decide inmediatamente alertar a la supuesta victima. Una buena accion que no quedara impune. En cuestion de horas Lang tendra que defenderse con una estatua de Buda jugar a las cartas con millonarios impiadosos y poner su vida (entre otras cosas) en manos de muchas mujeres fatales mientras intenta salvar a una linda chica e impedir un bano de sangre mundial. Aparecen en esta historia muchos de los elementos que se ven en los episodios de House: el alter ego salvador y la replica asesina de Hugh Laurie al servicio de una intriga apasionante y de un personaje que no sera olvidado tan pronto. Un actor que sepa escribir bien es algo raro pero Laurie al mixturar humor con una eficacia hollywoodense hace su entrada triunfal en el mundo de la literatura. ... Read more

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Read by Hugh Laurie Two cassettes Running time: 3 hours ... Read more

Customer Reviews (144)

This was an excellent page turning fluff novel
This was an excellent page turning fluff novel. Or so it seemed, having just read a 600 page
book on Napoleon's invasion of Russia...The author unfolded the story well and demonstrated a knack for
suspense and metaphor. Though some of the events were contrived and the story was
historically inaccurate a couple of times, the writing flowed and was gripping at times.
This was an entertaining read. For French Rev fans, this novel did not get into the details of the French Revolution.
In fact,the historical setting could havebeen almost any with no change to the basic plot.
Again, this was an entertaining read and would be a great book for the beach or a flight overseas.

Wonderful Classic Tale!
Fun book! I couldn't help feeling as I read The Scarlet Pimpernel, that I've been here before. I realized quick enough- I have.

I've been in exactly the same place in all those regency romance novels I've read in the past where the hero pretends to be something he's not and in every secret identity superhero story ever told.

It's said of TSP that it's a precursor to the masked avenger novels such as Zorro in addition to comic book characters such as Batman and Superman and any other dual identity hero. Again, I would go further and say it's a precursor, at least plotwise, to the historical romance genre as well.

In TSP, the hero hides the fact that he's a daring, strong, and intelligent masked avenger of the aristos being brutally slaughtered by Madam Guillotine during the French Revolution. And, if I hadn't known the secret identity of The Scarlet Pimpernel, the hero's nom de guerre, I wonder if I would have guessed his true identity right away?

But I don't want to give anything away for those who might chance to read this in the future and, unlike I, have not peaked at any commentaries (including "introductions" in certain editions) that give away the "big secret".

The book begins at a fast pace, telling us through other characters' observances, of recent Scarlet Pimpernel activities. I have to tell you, I ate up TSP's clever disguises and escapes and I chuckled right along with those laughing at the French mens' follies while trying to ensnare him.

We also get a glimpse of the bloody glee of the guillotine as it did it's job in front of mobs with nothing better to do than watch people go to their deaths. (This part didn't bother me in the least, as I've read several historicals of this time. It is truth, perhaps over-dramatized here for effect, but a truth none the less.)

The Pimpernel's job is to rescue people from their fate up on that bloody stage and he goes about his select business with daring intrigue and deception.

He's backed up by a league of 19 men who avow they are joining TSP in his endeavers for the thrill of the gamble, the sheer blood rushing ride of it all- that and the fact they are thumbing their nose at the French, which to British (and some of us Americans as well) is always a grand romp!

Perhaps it's true that these men got involved for these reason, but The Scarlet Pimp, I believe, is in it for much nobler reasons. Reasons I perhaps don't fully understand as a middle class American who has been bred to despise the exulting of one class above another. Still, reverse classism is never pretty either, and thus I can dug his motives.

The second character we find in prominent position is French expatriot Marguerite St. Just, now Lady Blakeney and the head of society in England. In time past, she aided the revolutionaries in France by sending one aristocratic family to their deaths. She now regrets the consequences of her actions- naïve and young at the time, she was simply revenging the brutal treatment of a most beloved brother by the hands of the upper class and never thought her actions through enough to see how it would end up.

It is these actions that have separated her form her upper class English husband and have made her ripe for the villain, Chauvelin, to use once again- this time in trapping The Scarlet Pimpernel.

(At this point, I fully understand her conflict. The device the villain uses to ensure her aid, is a good one. I would be just as torn as she!)

The plot moves quickly after this when she puts the evil Chauvelin onto the scent of The Pimpernel. It is during this time she uncovers his identity~ and I don't want to give anymore away, so you'll have to read it yourself to see how it all turns out!

I'm so glad took the time to finally read it!

God Save the King!
The Scarlet Pimpernel is a classic novel, though it is hard to categorize. It is part romance, part adventure, part spy thriller, and part superhero fiction. All of these elements went into the pot and the resulting stew is extremely entertaining.

The book follows the adventures of Sir Percy Blakeney as he seeks to help French aristocrats escape the guillotine during the French Revolution. Since official English policy forbids this, Blakeney adopts a masked identity as the Scarlet Pimpernel to remain anonymous. The French, of course, detest this interference in their affairs and set out to trap and kill the Pimpernel at all costs. As part of his effort to deflect suspicion from himself, he plays the fool in every day life and he does it well. His own wife considers him a useless fop... and that's where the story really gets interesting.

I won't give away more of the plot, but she ends up following him into danger in an attempt to save him. This allows the most suspenseful section of the book to be told from Mrs. Blakeney's perspective. Her terror for her husband's fate is pure and adds to the tension considerably. If we saw it through the Pimpernel's eyes, it would doubtless be far more composed and nowhere near as suspenseful.

In closing, The Scarlet Pimpernel is well worth buying. It's laugh out loud funny, suspenseful, romantic, and generally quite a page-turner.

"You surprise me, citoyenne"
This is a re-read for me, and one that I have to admit doesn't hold up nearly so well as an adult. Part of this is not the fault of the book as much as it is the fault of its many imitators. The foppish irresponsible aristocrat who is actually the super-competent avenger of justice has, in the meantime, been done-- done to death-- done again-- done some more. It lacks the kick that it had when I first read it so very long ago.

None of which makes it a bad book, not at all. It is still fun to read. Lots of romantic not-quite betrayal, love and derring-do. I don't think it's really a great book, that's all.

Orczy is worth a read simply for the influence that her work has had on other later authors. Don't expect too much, and you should be pleasantly surprised.

(Has anyone out there read any of the follow-up books to Pimpernel? Despite having loved this as a kid, I never read any of the other books with Sir Percy as the main character. Are they any good? Leave me a comment and let me know.)

Outstanding
This was such a great book that it has found itself on my re-reads for the October,the finest month. Margurite, Sir Percy, The Fishermans Rest, Dover, Calais, The Chat Gris...What a story. And That Demmed Ellusive Pimpernel. Once the book starts ,it does not stop. It rolls like a snowball. Being near the end of August now I am looking at the book on the shelf with greed. Buy it read it and savour it. ... Read more

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The third series of the television comedy show starring Rowan Atkinson as Edmund Blackadder. ... Read more

Product Description
Poor little chap! He had been turned into a very strange animal indeed ...Although they're small, fat and shy creatures; Moomins have the most amazing adventures. It all begins when Moominpappa tries on a magic hat that makes exciting and funny things happen. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (42)

timeless reading
I remember reading the Moomin series of books, starting with Finn Family Moomintroll when I was a child... Reading them again to my daughter has been a delight, we're both enjoying the exploits of Moomintroll and his family. The characters are beautifully crafted and the illustrations really help to bring an extraordinarily magical place into life. We're hoping to see a golden butterfly this summer...

My new favorite books for children of all ages
I love these books.They are amazingly unique.I was given the first book years ago and it sat on my shelf for ages.Then, for some reason, I picked it up and read it!It was so much fun.I actually laughed to myself while reading it!Of course, I had to read more and more of the books.Thank heavens there are plenty of them to read.Start with this book.You will have grand time!

These are a "must not miss" for kids and grownups alike
I grew up in the states, but my parents lived for a time in Europe before having a family and spent many hours in book shops(their hobby). Forty-some years ago my mother (whose taste in literature was instinctive and impeccable)found a boxed set for me (who knows where) and I have memories of that being the best Christmas present I ever got.They were charming, sensitive, adorable, witty little stories that withstand the test of time admirably.The characters are unforgettable; they let their hearts out to play in a way that readers young(and old)can empathize with.And the best part is - I get to share them with my daughter, now.

Spring Stories of Moomintroll

After living in Finland for a while, I decided to read the Moomin series of books. The first one seems "Moomins and the Great Flood" does not seem to be on Amazon but is available (in English) at least from the Moomin store in Helsinki-Vantaa airport.

Anyways, Finn Family Moomintroll is a great children's book. It starts whenMoomintroll wakes up and, together with Snufkin finds the Hobgoblins hat. There is something strange with the hat and most of the story is somewhat centered around it. I won't ruin the whole story, but the rest include boats, fish, wooden ladies, hattifratters, big rubies, fish.

The book is well written and I do recommend it for children or moomin fanatics. It also clearly has Finnish cultural influences, which are nice to recognize. So, why just three stars? It's a good book, it's not a great book (for example, not comparable to Alice in Wonderland). Also, it's not a book I would recommend to most adults.

Hoopla-do about not much
For me this book was a mess - disjointed, self indulgent, and self important, with so many characters it left my, and my childs head in a spin. Finally managed to struggle through it, but in hind-sight, the book had little that was coherent about it, and left me wishing we had read something else. Reading all these reviews makes me wonder who is writing them - the authors or the publishers?

Its complete tripe. ... Read more

Product Description
In the sequel to Portuguese Irregular Verbs, ourhero, Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld, is the unlikely choice to addressveterinarians in the Ozark mountains of Arkansas, is dogged bydachshunds, becomes embroiled with that notorious Coptic schismatic,the Duke of Johannesburg (and his victim the Patriarch of Alexandria),and finally ends up being mobbed as the star attraction on aMediterranean cruise ship. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (43)

What a character!
I read this book after a recommendation. This is one recommendation I'm pleased to have gotten. Such a fun character to read about. I haven't laughed too hard to read in quite some time. I'll definitely read the other books featuring this character!

A Bit Darker Than the Last
This series continues to grow on me, with this volume providing even more guffaws. And make no mistake, these are Guffaw Books, as opposed to Winsome Smile Books or the dread LOLer Tomes. A great airplane book, provided one's flight is of no great distance.

Brilliant!
This is his perhaps, his most nuanced and hilarious series, I keep waiting to hear more from herr professor doctor Von Ingelfeldt I know academics in their Ivory towers so firmly that they have this very myopic world view,Hits the nail on the head. Laugh out loud funny I recommend it to all my reading friends, especially those from academia.

Thoroughly enjoyable!
Paul Hecht's reading of "The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs" is enormously entertaining. For days I could not listen to a German accent without smiling :-)

The book is short, but deliciously comic. McCall Smith's pedantic but very likable protagonists find themselves in all kinds of existential crises. Their very human struggles, set within the minutiae of of day-to-day life, will resonate with anyone who has ever had a benign but annoying co-worker, a seemingly harmless social misunderstanding. The existential crises of modern life, it seems, comes not in overwhelming tidal waves but in small everyday challenges. Nothing dramatic ever happens, yet each moment is filled with drama. Bravo, McCall Smith - well done!

The Finer Points is not so fine
Although amusing, not nearly as entertaining as the 44 Scotland Street series, or The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency. ... Read more

Product Description
Read by Hugh Laurie Two cassettes Running time: 3 hours ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Good and Bad
I bought this book for my wife who loves the series. She said that the book was excelent, but beware, the editing is HORRIBLE. You have to be prepared to translate quite a few words in the text. It must have been edited by a computer becuase no human could be such an idiot. She said that it is kind of funny after a while, but she did enjoy the book.

A real triumph
This book brings the Scarlet Pimpernel series to a very satisfying end. Chambetin, er, Chauvelin finally gets what is coming to him!Sir Percy is at his debonnaire best. Marguerite, the love of his life appears, too. A must-read for any Scarlet Pimpernel fan.

Super Reader
The Scarlet Pimpernel again has to deal with a femme fatale, but this time, she is Spanish. This doesn't mean that the Robespierre types are not around, just that she is involved with one of them.

The Pimpernel has to save a brash young man from her wily clutches, and really is quite enjoying himself in the process.

When she can't outthink or seduce our hero, they decide to do the kidnap the wife routine. Committe, you should know by now, that trick never works.

Wonderful!!!!!!!!
This is one of my favorite pimpernel books. It is so awsome!
The story begins with a fortune teller predicting to Robispeirre that the only thing to hinder his taking over France is the Scarlet Pimpernel. So, of course, he goes to Chauvelin, who once again sets masterful plans for the Pimpernel's capture.

One of the things that I liked about this book was the simplicity of plot. No more going for the Pimpernel's honor, or others through him. The plot is cut and dry simple, catch and kill the Scarlet Pimpernel. That is not to say that the Pimpernel does not have something up his sleeve. I simply mean that as far as Chauvelin is concerned his plots aren't as elaborate or far-fetched as they have been in the past.

Margarite is also involved(duh). But in the case of this book, she actually doesn't get involed through an act of her own stupidity. Also in this book it dwells less on Margarite's life in her captivity than others do.

Lastly, I love the dialogs in this book. Percy shines in this book almost unlike any other. Therisa Cabarras is an interesting character, and she has two great conversations with our elusive Hero. Chauvelin is Chauvelin. No matter how hard he tries he simply cannot keep track of Percy(and belive me he tries extra hard in this book). Chauvelin and Percy have the best exchange ever in this book, a whole chapter of uninterupted audacidy. Any Pimpernel lover will be in heaven.

I highly recomend this book to all who liked the original, and any of the sequels. But if you haven't read the original Scarlet Pimpernel then I suggest reading that first, so as to know the characters a little better.
-E

A real triumph
If you know this story, or have even read the CAPS section above, you'll know where I get my net-name from.La Cabarrus (based on a historical figure whose real life reads better than most fiction) is the main reason why this book is one of the best in the series.The terror has reached its height and both of Orczy's main protagonists are beginning to crack under the strain.Chauvelin has become obsessed with catching Sir Percy using any means necessary and his current tool is beautiful Spaniard, Theresia Cabarrus.Unfortunately for both Chauvelin and Blakeney, you never quite know where her loyalties lie.When she succeeds in luring Margot into Chauvelin's clutches, Sir Percy is driven to ever more extreme measures to save her.Can Cabarrus be trusted?Is she friend or foe?Unlike Chauvelin, she can see through Sir Percy's disguises, which makes her doubly dangerous to know.

As ever Orczy delivers a cracking good adventure through a slightly rose-tinted quizzing-glass, making even the rather gruesome sections seem light-hearted... unless you really stop and think about what she's saying. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (77)

It's Abridged!
The audio CD is abridged.It comes with the book, which was unexpected and nice to get.But the photo that says Unabridged is actually of the book, not of the CD.The CD is abridged, alas.

If You Think You Don't Like 19-Century Literature, Read This
Although it was first published in 1889, the writing in this short but absolutely delightful book feels surprisingly modern.Yet Jerome's account of a rowboat and camping trip up the Thames River from Kingston to Oxford also gives the reader a lively and vivid picture of 19th century England.

According to Wickipedia, Three Men in a Boat was originally intended to be a standard travel narrative - a serious travel guide with accounts of local history along the route.But so many funny things happened that it ended up as a comedy.Today we'd call it travel humor.And it truly is laugh-out-loud hilarious!But it still retains plenty of history and information as well.And there are serious parts as well, such as the finding of the body of a young girl who committed suicide, which was based on a real incident.

My favorite story was the one about the stuffed trout and the lying fishermen.

At the (brilliant!) suggestion of another reviewer (Fara Shimbo on Amazon), I followed along on a satellite map as I read.It adds even more to the enjoyment of the book to be able to actually see the places you are reading about.Of course much has changed in the 130 years since the book was written, but some things - Hampton Court, for example - are still the same.You can even see the maze, which makes it clear that Jerome's story of getting lost in it with a crowd of people is greatly exaggerated!
[...]

I enjoyed this book so much that I can't wait to read the sequel, about the same three men who later in life make a bicycle and train journey through Germany.It's called Three Men on a Brummel.

Be warned that, as in many 19th century books, there are a couple of instances that may be offensive: an anti-Semitic remark, and one use of the N-word.I realize that it may not have been considered offensive at the time, simply a descriptive term.But the context in which it is used is also mildly derogatory.The racism isn't as blatant as I've seen in some other classic books, though.But that may just be because the population of England was so racially homogenous at the time - perhaps Jerome just didn't encounter people of other ethnic backgrounds often enough to make many offensive comments about them.


Quotes from Three Men on a Boat:

"It is a curious fact, but nobody ever gets sea-sick on land."(Of course, this was written before the invention of the automobile!)

"That's Harris all over - so ready to take the burden of everything himself . . . and put it on the backs of other people."

"Will the prized treasures of today always be the cheap treasures of the day before?Will rows of our willow-pattern dinner-plates be ranged above the chimneypieces of the great in the years 2000 and odd?"(How fascinating to read this in the years 2000-odd and know that they will indeed be!)

"The water looked damp and chilly."(Damp - how else would water look?A great example of the dry British wit of the the book, subtle bits of humor that could be easily overlooked if the reader is inattentive.)

"I like to watch an old boatman rowing, especially one who has been hired by the hour.There is something so beautifully calm and restful about his method.It is so free from that fretful haste, that vehement striving, that is every day becoming more and more the bane of nineteenth-century life."(After laughing at the humor, one is struck by how little has changed in the past century!)

"Six shillings a week does not keep body and soul together very unitedly.They want to get away from each other when there is only such a very slight bond as that between them."

"W. Lee, who died in 1637, 'had in his lifetime issue from his loins two hundred lacking but three.'If you work this out you will find that Mr. W. Lee's family numbered one hundred and ninety-seven.Mr. W. Lee - five times Mayor of Abingdon - was, no doubt, a benefactor to his generation, but I hope there are not many of his kind about in this overcrowded nineteenth century."(How interesting that people were concerned about overpopulation in 1889!)

(184 pages)

Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K Jerome


In spite of its age, this is still one of the most humourous books written in the English language and always retains its freshness.

Perhaps Jerome K Jerome was Bill Bryson's grandfather!
If you can imagine a Bill Bryson comic travelogue written by someone with turn-of-the-20th-century Victorian sensibilities and a typical laid back yet biting, caustic British sense of humour ... then you have a pretty good handle on what to expect when you read Jerome K Jerome's classic "Three Men in a Boat"!

While it was originally intended to be a serious travel guide, the story devolved in the writing into an almost slapstick story of the trials and tribulations of three landlubbers who took it into their minds to take a boating holiday on the Thames River.

Even Jerome's establishment of the raison d'être for the river trip is a wonderful example of that brand of humour that is uniquely British. Three mates, each a worse hypochondriac than the other two, are discussing their respective ills, pains, aches and ailments (and this conversation, by the way, establishes the humour for the entire book that ranges somewhere in a triangle bounded by wry grins, charmed smiles and laugh-out-loud hilarity). The mutual decision is reached that taking the air and relaxing on an open boat trip under canvas on the Thames would be good for what ails everybody. Sherlock Holmes would have said, "The game is afoot!".

If the book were a television show, it might be described as a series of loosely related comedy sketches - the difficulties of learning to play a bagpipe; how to get lost on a river that goes in only one direction; how men typically behave (or misbehave) when they've had too much to drink on a camping trip; how to do as little work as possible while ensuring that your buddies are not aware of what's going on, and so on.

Sit back and enjoy! "Three Men in a Boat" has to be the most easy-reading classic you could possibly find. Highly recommended.

Paul Weiss

Abridged!
I feel like I should point out: The audio version here is in fact abridged. So don't pay more for this one because you think it's the unabridged reading. CSA Word only produced the abridged reading. ... Read more

Product Description
Deep in the African heartland/Way out on the hot sunny plains,/There lived a small lion who didn't fit in/And Leo was this lion's name. All Leo wants is to love and hug his fellow lions, but his mother tells him that if he can't learn to hunt he has no place in the pride. So Leo is all alone...until out in the wide world he meets lots of animals who appreciate his love, hug and help. Soon he has a whole pride of his own, made up of all his friends. Even the other lions appreciate Leo's love in the end. This funny, touching rhyming text is wonderfully brought to life by Hugh Laurie with accompanying jungle music and sound effects. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Not one of Giles Andreae's best
I am a big fan of Giles' books.We have most of them!Our favorites.. Giraffes Can't Dance and Rumble in the Jungle.But this one did not meet our expectations.First of all, the mother sends Leo away!What mother would ever send her child away?It doesn't make sense.Also, I don't like all of the references to death.And "biting through the skin" of the zebra.It's definitely not good for young children.

Good story about valuing those that are different
This story shows the value of helping and respecting others, especially when they are different.You never know when you are going to need them for help.

A vegetarian lion?Come on!
You know, I really want to be able to endorse this book.The illustrations, quite colorful and appealing, though infantile and lacking detail, are pretty cute--especially the young cheetah in distress--and theycarry the book, coupled with the fact that the story is told in rhyme.Youjust can't beat a rhyming book with good meter!I just draw the line wherea seemingly possible story strays into the realm of impossibility.Whatdoes a young vegetarian lion eat?This point is not addressed.Icategorize this book with ones like "The Rainbow Fish", in whichauthors seem to try to brainwash our children into accepting some sort ofutopian ideal of living in harmony with the universe.The problem withthis idea is that it simply does not work in practice.It's a nice goaltoward which to strive, but the nasty reality is that in today's world,it's the fastest, strongest, and meanest lion who gets to be king of thepride.

Daring to be different and ending up the leader of the pride
Fantastic book for 2-5 year olds.Great rythm and vocabulary.The artwork is well suited for children.Still one of my favorite books for bedtime.

Demonstrates helping, cooperation and teamwork
My five year old as well as the other five girls in her Daisy Troop loved this book.I found it fun and easy to read aloud and used it to discuss love,cooperation,teamwork and helping. ... Read more

Product Description
Of a restless disposition, Lemuel Gulliver escapes London for the remote regions of the world. During his many, often terrifying, adventures he encounters the tiny squabbling inhabitants of Lilliput and the simple giants of Brobdingnag, as well as the noble Houyhnhnms and brutish Yahoo. From them he learns bitter lessons of human life which make him question his most cherished beliefs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (151)

Good book, reads like an adventure story!
why buy a Kindle or Nook if you can get it on your phone? This book is great; read it as a youth and now rereading it on my phone whenever I have a break... it takes one to other lands, a real original.

Best Satire of All Time, a Comic Masterpeice
This book is a masterpiece.I picked up an old dusty copy of this title at a book fair just so I could have this classic on my shelf.I was just out of college and not too interested in reading anything too boring and heavy.I figured I would scan through it just so I would be able to to say I read it and talk about it a little.What a surprise when I started reading- I couldn't put it down!

It was the original version with the addition of footnotes that explained the political climate and other relevant facts of the day.I strongly suggest that you obtain a version with this information as without it you are missing 3/4 of the reading experience.I actually read the whole book twice just to try and pick up the funny, quirky things I might have missed.There are just so many levels to this book.On the surface it is a book about a man and his travels to strange faraway places.Underneath it is a scathing, comical, statement on the state of society and the movers and shakers of the day.I did not know that Jonathan Swift was a comic genius, but this is a fact you cannot miss if you read this book understanding the social satire weaved throught its chapters.I actually would find myself laughing out loud and being overcome with awe at the complexity of the humor the author was able to conjure.

An Epic Adventure
It is difficult to review a "classic" novel given the weight of history and the number of reviews already written. However, this is an enjoyable adventure with very imaginative settings.

I agree with earlier reviews that the first 2 voyages are the more interesting, or at least not so laden with political messages. The later two are more interesting ideas for alternative fantasy settings but are bogged down by too much preaching.

There is a gem in here for Studio Ghibli fans, the third voyage was inspiration for a popular Ghibli movie.

From little to Big
My first experience of Gulliver's Travels was when I was about 7 or 8. My father had been a part of this subscription service from some publisher (I think it's the Franklin Library) called the "100 Greatest Books of All Time." The edition he had was heavy with gilded pages and was something that seemed like one of those medieval illuminated manuscripts. Each few pages had a beautiful, colored illustration of Gulliver struggling.

Before I'd go to bed, he'd sit by my dresser on his wooden chair with a glass of water--at least that's what I thought it was--on his knee, and I'd be wrapped in a blanket with my back to the head of my bed frame. When he started reading, his posture would straighten out and he'd hold the gold hardback up to his eyes with one hand, the glass of "water" held in the other. Every few page turns, he'd sip at the glass and inhale sharply as if he were washing down what he had read. I remember hearing his voice bellow above the reading lamp in a kind of dark monotone. It wasn't like when he read My Father's Dragon or Wonderland. He would describe Gulliver trapped and tied down, and I remember feeling guilty for laughing. The most he would do is invisibly smile in the shadow of the lamplight and snicker.

My father died this past summer. About a month after the funeral, I was walking through Border's trying to figure out what books I wanted my students to read (I just started a teaching apprenticeship at a local high school), and I ended up finding this edition. The good thing about it is that the price is so cheap.

Upon rereading it this past summer, I suddenly realized what Swift and my Father saw in the text. This was by no means simply a children's book or even a "misanthropic" novel, but instead, Gulliver's Travels maps perfectly the lifespan of a human being. This novel is clearly a bildungsroman. This occurred to me when I realized that the reader's concept of the author "Gulliver" is a result of his travels. Each world he visits, he is at first considered an outsider and then becomes, somewhat, a part of the society. Gulliver is an amorphous narrator; he exists only through these worlds and therefore, grows with the text. He is not just a passive observer to these magical places, but the context of his visits shapes him, the narrator, as much as it does change the reader.

How he is seen is through the context in which he is put. The Lilliputians are, obviously, a symbol for childhood. Brobbindang is pubescence as in this section, Gulliver sees the ugliness of the human form. The things that were cute in childhood now are these frightening forms. The last world Gulliver visits is a reference to the cynicism of old age. He sees humanity for what it is, a bunch of Yahoos. With this key in mind, you can clearly see how Gulliver's Travels is not misanthropic but an acceptance and analysis of the "human life cycle." We all go through these stages during our life, just like how we go through them while reading the text. My father helped me realize this. When he read this novel to me as a child, he was teaching me what to expect from this world.

However, this edition is worth "four stars" because the book is fairly cheap and feels like it will fall apart at any second. It feels as if there is no weight to it and is poorly constructed. Pages would be ripped out as they were turned. My father's stable, gold hardback edition was sold in a garage sale for a few cents four years ago. It's sad to say i don't think you can read it like that hardback tomb anymore.

Kindle Edition is NOT the Same Book!!!!!
I purchased this book in Kindle form in order to use it as a reference book for a research paper regarding Swift & Gulliver;s Travels. I thought it would be easier than using the Google Books version, since it would be at my disposal regardless of being online or not. Imagine my surprise when I opened the book & it was the exact same book I already have, Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift & NOT Gulliver's Travels (Case Studies in Contemporary Criticism) by Swift & Christopher Fox. Kindle didn't even pick it up as the same book, but when I clicked on this new book, it actually opened up to the place I had bookmarked in my previously purchased "Gulliver" book. I do NOT need two exact copies of the same book!!! Bad Amazon!!! ... Read more