elegantlion Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 A few years ago we read a children's version of Don Quixote. Neither of us has read the unabridged version, and that is on the list for down the road. He enjoyed the humor of the book though. What else might fall into that category? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swimmermom3 Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 At what level do you want the book to be? My youngest really enjoyed Oliver Twist for all of it's sentimentality because of some of the plays on words and sly humor. Geraldine McCoughrean's One Thousand and One Arabian Nights is really well done and she captures the quick and subtle wit representative of many Eastern cultures. I have an adult version on the way to see if it is half as captivating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa B Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 I love Don Quixote. Other books that seem to have a similar wit/feel (though adult themes abound in many) ... Canterbury Tales Decameron 1001 Arabian Nights Candide one of the King Arthur legend books - maybe Once and Future King? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 Well.... I think Cervantes is unique, so there's nothing quite exactly like him, but, here's an eclectic list for you, with some more like the journey/journey of self discovery aspect, and others more heavy on the quirky humor. Hope that will trigger something for you! Happy reading! Warmest regards, Lori D. B.C. The Odyssey (Homer) 14th century some of the Canterbury Tales (Chaucer) Utopia (Moore) 18th century Gulliver's Travels (Swift) Candide (Voltaire) -- a bit ribald in parts 19th century David Copperfield (or Oliver Twist) (Dickens) The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Twain) 20th century The Man Who Was Thursday (Chesterton) Father Brown short story mysteries (Chesterton) The Importance of Being Earnest (Wilde) works by P.G. Wodehouse -- Wodehouse on Crime is a great short story collection To Kill a Mockingbird (Lee) The Princess Bride (Goldman) Confederacy of Dunces (Toole) -- a bit ribald in parts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted April 12, 2013 Author Share Posted April 12, 2013 High school level is fine, something a little less than unabridged Don Quixote length wise. He's read Arabian Nights and The Odyssey, but not the others. Thanks, I have a few of these on my shelf already. I like it when that happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swimmermom3 Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 Once and Future King was a huge hit here. It has Monty Python written all over certain parts of it. My son will never forget the Questing Beast finding a "mate." Also, "A Modest Proposal" was an absolute mind blower for my youngest. He talked about it as much as he talked about 1984 and The inferno. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candid Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 Technically Don Quixote is satire. He might look at other works of satire such as Lisa's A Modest Proposal. However, he might before tackling that, tackle Swift's other work Gulliver's Travels which is also satire. I'm not totally sure he will like Swift because Cervantes is so gentle for satire and Swift is the opposite. He may also like Moliere's Tartuffe and other plays. For that matter the whole 18th Century was rife with satire so trying there might be a place to look. In poetry try Pope's Rape of the Lock (faeries steal a lock of hair). Also tons of drama filled with satire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted April 13, 2013 Share Posted April 13, 2013 What about novels like Tom Jones or The Life and Opinions of Tristam Shandy? Both are comic novels from a little later, chronologically. I read them both in high school and when I read DQ, it reminded me of them, though I'm sure causality went the other way . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan of Croton Posted April 14, 2013 Share Posted April 14, 2013 Pickwick Papers by Dickens has a similar serial/picaresque format to Don Quixote. It's also zany and not ribald. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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