Don Quixote (Candlewick Illustrated Classic) [Hardcover]

Martin Jenkins (Adapter), Miguel de Cervantes (Author), Chris Riddell (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up | Series: Candlewick Illustrated Classic

From the award-winning team behind the acclaimed retelling of Jonathan Swift’s GULLIVER comes an accessible, lavishly illustrated edition of a beloved classic.

One of the funniest and most touching novels ever written, Don Quixote has forever memorialized the story of a Spanish gentleman who reads so many books about chivalric knighthood that he is convinced his own destiny is to become a knight-errant. And so he embarks upon a series of fantastical adventures across sixteenth-century Spain, accompanied by his faithful and philosophical squire, Sancho Panza. Superbly retold by Martin Jenkins and illustrated with great wit and humor by Chris Riddell, this is surely the ultimate edition of a book that takes its place among the best loved in the world.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Jenkins and Riddell seem to be working their way through the satirical adventure canon, with rather rewarding results. Having tackled Gulliver and his travels in 2005, they now set their sights on the famed tilter at windmills and his rotund squire. Jenkins’ rendition is faithful almost to a fault, at times sounding more like summarization than adaptation. Though keeping stock of the litany of secondary characters may leave some readers a little woozy, the book does a fine job of capturing the sly satire and the duo’s slapstick schtick. The chapter headings are especially mirthful: “Don Quixote Beats Up Some Sheep, Is Felled by Some Stones, and Ends Up With Fewer Teeth Than He Started With.” Jenkins’ always impressive and expressive artwork—characters are both gnarled and caricaturish—is an ideal medium in which to mix the tale’s deadpan silliness with Quixote’s unhinged fantasies. While the long and text-heavy narrative can be a little intimidating, the artwork in the margins and especially the abundance of grand, full-page scenes should keep readers engaged throughout this picaresque classic of deluded knight-errantry. Grades 5-8. --Ian Chipman

About the Author

Martin Jenkins previously collaborated with Chris Riddell on an acclaimed retelling of Jonathan Swift’s GULLIVER. He is also the author of APE, THE EMPEROR'S EGG, and TITANIC. A conservation biologist, he lives in England.

Chris Riddell is an author and political cartoonist and the illustrator of Richard Platt’s PIRATE DIARY and Jonathan Swift’s GULLVER, both winners of the Kate Greenaway Medal, as well as CASTLE DIARY by Richard Platt. He lives in England.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick (April 14, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763640816
• ISBN-13: 978-0763640811
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 1.3 x 9.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #163,879 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazingly good children's version of a timeless classic!, July 5, 2009

By 

R. Bergeron (Sausalito, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Don Quixote (Candlewick Illustrated Classic) (Hardcover)

I bought this book after reading a recommendation in the Wall Street Journal on newly published children's books. At first, I thought this might be over my six year old son's head but I was so wrong. It was perfect! I would read to him a couple of expertly crafted and illustrated chapters a night and he was enthralled. He understood the characters and the plot and we would tease each other as to which of us was Don Quixote and Sancho Panza. The illustrations are on almost every page and the book is gorgeous - printed on heavy paper and with easy to read (and digest) chapters. Can't recommend it more highly as a way to introduce the classics to young children. Our thanks to the author and the illustrator --- we hope you have many more classics in the works!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars great pictures, unreadable text, July 21, 2010

By 

Ekaterina Floyd (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Don Quixote (Candlewick Illustrated Classic) (Hardcover)

This book is nicely made: hardcover, good paper, about 350 pages. Most importantly it has Great illustrations: detailed, expressive, professional. And a lot of them - on each single page.

My most disappointment comes from the text, in particular from the type: it is impossible to read. The type is big (and against colored background it creates too mush contrast for comfortable reading), plus it is set in typeface similar to cursive. Again, the text looks graphic but tires your eyes quickly and is hard.

I hope they will reprint this book with readable text, otherwise I'll keep it strictly as "collector's item".

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent adaption of a classic, November 22, 2009

By 

Fountain Pen72 (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Don Quixote (Candlewick Illustrated Classic) (Hardcover)

Our 9-year-old son has taken an interest in the classics since our PBS station has been rerunning Wishbone episodes, and Don Quixote particularly caught his interest. We weren't sure how to share the story with him until I found this version, which has been perfect. The retelling is lovely and humorous, the illustrations are gorgeous, and it is fine for a read aloud or a strong independent reader who already has an interest in the tale.