Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8788 in Books
• Published on: 1994-01-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780802130860
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Customer Reviews

Amazingly Funny / Witty / Deep Novel
I was expecting a mildly amusing but somewhat slow-going novel when I picked up Monkey for my class in Chinese Literature. But I could not put it down and finished the whole of it in two sittings! This book is as much of a page turner as any modern novel, using everything from cunning plot turns to end-of-chapter guises ("And if you don't know what became of them, you must listen to what is told in the next chapter.") to absolutely hilarious anecdotes. (I laughed aloud at the "Taoist Holy Water" episode!) An amazingly well-crafted novel with a very very fluid translation that makes it an absolute delight to read. Again: I could not put this book down! The fight scenes were also spectacular...[still panting, having just finished the book]...you must read this book! =)

The sentiments of the first reviewer...
are mine exactly. When I read this book for my Chinese literature class this semester I couldn't put it down. Though it is abridged from 100 to 30 chapters, most of what is removed is not as interesting. The best part about Arthur Waley's translation of "Journey to the West" (he renamed it "Monkey") is that he is one of the first to play up the very hilarious humor in the book, though there is of course a quite serious religious undertone to the whole thing. This is an amazingly funny story from the Ming Dynasty, which will not disappoint any fan of fantasy, peculiar humor or spiritual quests. A true classic of Asian literature.

Exuberant fairytale with an edge
Unlike most people, I didn't come to this book through the TV series - I have heard of it, but I've never seen it (although I do intend to try to find it now...).

This translation covers only sections of the Monkey/Journey to the West saga, but what there is of it conveys well the flavour of the tale without outstaying its welcome. The plot, such as it is, revolves around the priest Tripitaka and his disciples (including Monkey), who have been charged to journey to the West and return with Buddhist scriptures for the enlightenment of China.

The story can, at times, be distinctly difficult to get your head around; superficially at least, it's little more than a succession of episodes involving bizarre monsters being defeated with elaborate magical powers. There is, however, plenty of humour - generally farcical in nature, although occasionally quite dry - and the bickering of the main characters is frequently entertaining. The bureaucratic nature of heaven, in which spirits and deities are assigned strictly hierarchical posts - with salaries! - is amusing regardless of how much you know of Chinese history and society.

However, many of the Buddhist and Taoist elements may be confusing to readers unfamiliar with the basic concepts. Some of the episodes rely quite heavily on outcomes grounded in, say, the workings of karma or the achievement of enlightenment - although most do conclude with Monkey and friends beating up the monsters in question, frequently with the spiritual aid of Kuan-yin and other divinities. But I do suspect that there are allusions and layers I'm missing...

To paraphrase the end-of-chapter refrain, if you want to know whether Monkey and his companions succeed on their quest, you'll have to read the book!