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Journey to the West:
The classic Chinese “Imagine a combination of picaresque novel, fairy tale, fabliau, Mickey Mouse, Davy Crockett, and Pilgrim’s Progress” (The Nation).
Probably the most popular book in the history of the Far East, this classic sixteenth-century novel is a combination of picaresque novel and folk epic that mixes satire, allegory, and history into a rollicking adventure. It is the story of the roguish Monkey and his encounters with major and minor spirits, gods, demigods, demons, ogres, monsters, and fairies. This translation, by the distinguished scholar Arthur Waley, is the first accurate English version; it makes available to the Western reader a faithful reproduction of the spirit and meaning of the original.
“Mr. Waley has done a remarkable job with this translation.” —Helena Kuo, The New York Times
“The irreverent spirit and exuberant vitality of it portraiture . . . make it an entertainment to which Mr. Waley’s witty translation has obviously contributed not a little.” —The Times (London)
“Told with immense gusto, and quite apart from its deeper meaning and wise proverbial sayings it is full of entertainment.” —The Guardian
Probably the most popular book in the history of the Far East, this classic sixteenth-century novel is a combination of picaresque novel and folk epic that mixes satire, allegory, and history into a rollicking adventure. It is the story of the roguish Monkey and his encounters with major and minor spirits, gods, demigods, demons, ogres, monsters, and fairies. This translation, by the distinguished scholar Arthur Waley, is the first accurate English version; it makes available to the Western reader a faithful reproduction of the spirit and meaning of the original.
“Mr. Waley has done a remarkable job with this translation.” —Helena Kuo, The New York Times
“The irreverent spirit and exuberant vitality of it portraiture . . . make it an entertainment to which Mr. Waley’s witty translation has obviously contributed not a little.” —The Times (London)
“Told with immense gusto, and quite apart from its deeper meaning and wise proverbial sayings it is full of entertainment.” —The Guardian
324 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 6, 2024
57 people are currently reading
41 people want to read
About the author
Wu Cheng'en
687 books190 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
Wu Cheng'en (simplified Chinese: 吴承恩; traditional Chinese: 吳承恩; pinyin: Wú Chéng'ēn, ca. 1505–1580 or 1500–1582, courtesy name Ruzhong (汝忠), pen name "Sheyang Hermit," was a Chinese novelist and poet of the Ming Dynasty, best known for being the probable author of one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature, Journey to the West, also called Monkey.
Wu Cheng'en (simplified Chinese: 吴承恩; traditional Chinese: 吳承恩; pinyin: Wú Chéng'ēn, ca. 1505–1580 or 1500–1582, courtesy name Ruzhong (汝忠), pen name "Sheyang Hermit," was a Chinese novelist and poet of the Ming Dynasty, best known for being the probable author of one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature, Journey to the West, also called Monkey.
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