The Madman: His Parables and Poems [Paperback]

Kahlil Gibran (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 3, 2001

Thought-provoking collection of life-affirming parables and poems by the author of The Prophet, many casting an ironic light on the beliefs, aspirations, and vanities of humankind. "How I Became a Madman," "The Two Hermits," "The Wise Dog," "The Good God and the Evil God," "Night and the Madman," many more. Three illustrations by the author.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"One may not reach the dawn save by the path of the night."- Kahlil GibranAlso available from Download eBooks: Kahlil Gibran's SAND AND FOAM, THE PROPHET, JESUS THE SON OF MAN, THE GARDEN OF THE PROPHET, and BROKEN WINGS, all highly recommended.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications (December 3, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486419118
• ISBN-13: 978-0486419114
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.4 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 0.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #317,152 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #57 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > Poetry > Single Authors > United States
  • #63 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > World Literature > United States > Poetry

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 67 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gilbran's first masterpiece, January 27, 2002

By 

S. M Marson (Lumberton, NC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: The Madman: His Parables and Poems (Paperback)

Kahlil Gilbran's masterpiece has always been considered THE PROPHET. In addition to writing this profound and inspiring poetry, he composed 12 other books of verses. However, none of these are as renown as THE PROPHET. In fact, many Americans who love THE PROPHET don't realize the existence of his other work. This is too bad.

THE MADMAN was first published in 1918. Although written nearly 100 years ago, it remains timely. In addition, it was Gibran's first published verse. It went out of print several years ago, but has recently been made available. This book of verse is a real treasure. Of all Gilbran's writing, THE MADMAN is my favorite. In fact, I like it more than THE PROPHET. I found it thoughtful, insightful and most importantly self reflecting.

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect, January 9, 2004

By 

Puff (CHICAGO, ILLINOIS United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The madman, his parables and poems

This is a collection of short parables ranging in length from a single paragraph to a few pages. They are individualist in nature and center around a single soul's dealings with the world around it. Notions of truth and being are communicated in that soul's interactions with God, friends, neighbors, strangers, animals and itself. It is quite possibly the most perfect writing I have ever read.

Fans of prose should enjoy Gibran's style immensely. I prefer it to the general colloquial style of writing and it is more expressive than similar styles of essay and short story writing. Gibran also has several other books, in addition to "The Prophet," that are worthy of reading. I own "The Madman,
"The Voice of the Master," and "Sand and Foam." This one is my favorite. It is an astoundingly eloquent, but still clear and expressive collection of writing on the most fundamentally important of all topics.

There are very few human beings capable of rivaling scripture in the emotions that their writings invoke. Kahlil Gibran was one of them.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Calming and Peaceful Reading, January 1, 2008

By 

Jam - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Madman: His Parables and Poems (Paperback)

Like all Gibran's writings, The Madman puts the mind in a peaceful and tranquil state.
The Madman is a collection of 35 short moral stories and poetry that tell the tale of an individual who had all his self-imposed illusions and artificial faces stripped from him, leaving him just with the truth of his life, his observations and his surroundings. It shows the irony of sanity and it's status as a social construct.

This book is very short (only around 71 pages, depending on your edition) and can be read very quickly. This is useful, because I've found I wanted to read it several times over. It's especially great for plane rides or any other situation in which you might find yourself harried or stressed with things beyond your control.