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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
29 of 31 people found the following review helpful
By Austen Jane
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
I read the Canterbury Tales in college in the original Middle English, and was hoping this e-book would be in the original format, but instead it is translated. A lot of the beauty is lost in the translation. It's disappointing, but it's free, so I can't really complain.
16 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition
While definitely an economical choice, this version is very difficult to read. As an epic poem, it would have been helpful if the writers might have been able to frame this copy in the lines of poetry, not as run on paragraphs with the individual lines set off only by in text markers. Following along and/or keeping track of your place while reading becomes tedious.
High marks for price, but very low for its actual usefulness.
High marks for price, but very low for its actual usefulness.
9 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
Two reasons this gets two stars: The translation and the formatting.
I knew I couldn't handle Canterbury Tales in Middle English, so this 19th-century translation seemed like a good bet. I can read 19th-century English very well, thank you, but this isn't 19th-century English. It's more like a stew of ancient and modern, and is difficult to comprehend without constantly looking up terms--terms that aren't in a dictionary. I'm not sure why Purves did this, except to give flavor to the words. I would suggest getting a translation that is completely in more modern English. The stories stand on their own, without (what seems to me) artifice.
But that isn't the worst of this edition. I know enough German that by reading aloud, I can understand the Germanic words. The worst is the way the text is formatted. In their opening notes, the formatters state that they took Purves' notes and put the glosses in the margin, flush right, and the longer notes at the end of each section. Nuh-uh. The glosses are NOT right justified, and are simply run onto the ends of the lines. If the definition is longer than the page is wide, it wraps either under the line or onto the end of the next line. This makes it extremely difficult to know where the poem leaves off and the notes begin.
Having the longer notes at the end of each section would be acceptable IF they were accessible by clicking on the numbers interspersed rather jarringly throughout the text. They aren't, and without an active table of contents, it is impossible to refer to the notes and back to your place again easily. In fact, there isn't even a button to go to the Table of Contents; one has to go to the beginning and page through.
I would so love to be able to move easily between the Prologue, which is Chaucer's summary of each character, and the tale each one tells, and to be able to refer quickly to the notes that explain some of the places and professions.
I knew I couldn't handle Canterbury Tales in Middle English, so this 19th-century translation seemed like a good bet. I can read 19th-century English very well, thank you, but this isn't 19th-century English. It's more like a stew of ancient and modern, and is difficult to comprehend without constantly looking up terms--terms that aren't in a dictionary. I'm not sure why Purves did this, except to give flavor to the words. I would suggest getting a translation that is completely in more modern English. The stories stand on their own, without (what seems to me) artifice.
But that isn't the worst of this edition. I know enough German that by reading aloud, I can understand the Germanic words. The worst is the way the text is formatted. In their opening notes, the formatters state that they took Purves' notes and put the glosses in the margin, flush right, and the longer notes at the end of each section. Nuh-uh. The glosses are NOT right justified, and are simply run onto the ends of the lines. If the definition is longer than the page is wide, it wraps either under the line or onto the end of the next line. This makes it extremely difficult to know where the poem leaves off and the notes begin.
Having the longer notes at the end of each section would be acceptable IF they were accessible by clicking on the numbers interspersed rather jarringly throughout the text. They aren't, and without an active table of contents, it is impossible to refer to the notes and back to your place again easily. In fact, there isn't even a button to go to the Table of Contents; one has to go to the beginning and page through.
I would so love to be able to move easily between the Prologue, which is Chaucer's summary of each character, and the tale each one tells, and to be able to refer quickly to the notes that explain some of the places and professions.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
Good story, but not a great translation
The tales are wonderful stories, but this is the best translation. I have read other books in the past that told the stories better.
Published 1 month ago by Mike Dorman
2.0 out of 5 stars
Maybe Another Version?
This is the first time I have read this book and I'm not sure I chose the right edition. The free edition from Amazon is apparently a 19th century translation which combined... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Lynn Ellingwood
5.0 out of 5 stars
great book
a classic, and a free book for kindle. can't beat that. everyone that owns a kindle should download these free classics!
Published 2 months ago by michiganshopper
5.0 out of 5 stars
3rd time
This is the 3rd time I have read this book. I love this shakespeare type poetry The characters come alive.
Published 3 months ago by Keyanna Scott
3.0 out of 5 stars
Probably a good read if you understand old English
I gave up trying to read this book. I'm not sure why it is such a popular book. I'm sure someone who enjoys this type of reading would like this format.
Published 5 months ago by Ben
5.0 out of 5 stars
seems inappropriate
for someone as simple as me to rate this or be asked to rate this great literary work???? Obviously speaks for itself!
Published 5 months ago by iris
1.0 out of 5 stars
Difficult to Navigate
I bought this to read for a College British Literature course. It is worth NOTHING to me as there is NO TABLE of CONTENTS. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Longshot
3.0 out of 5 stars
You get what you pay for
As far as I can tell there are no missing parts to the book, but as usual with these free books the formatting is awful, there are random symbols in the middle of words and it... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Good
5.0 out of 5 stars
Magnificent and Sexy(?)
Oh YES, some are quite exciting. The rest are just delightful. You and I may never visit Canterbury, England and we may not have lived in the times which are so beautifully... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Ward Haskell
2.0 out of 5 stars
Maybe it's just me but I found the format unreadable.
I expected more of a story format, or a series of tales. Despite the title I wasn't expecting the poetry format.
Published 11 months ago by Lawrence Ranes
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