Max and Moritz (Dover Humor) [Paperback]

Wilhelm Busch (Author)

Book Description

Series: Dover Humor | Publication Date: June 1, 1962

Great humor classic in both German and English. Also 10 other works: "Cat and Mouse," "Plisch and Plumm," and more.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-7 Anyone familiar with the comic strip which featured the Katzenjammer Kids will recognize the Kids' antecedents in Max and Moritz . First published in Germany in 1872, the book relates seven mischievious and, by today's standards, malicious pranks played by the two before they are ground to bits in a mill and gobbled up by ducks. "Max and Moritz" editions have been generally unavailable, and students curious about the history of cartoon and comic illustration will welcome the chance to view these tinted etchings, facsimiles of the original text. Arndt's translation in rhymed couplets reads smoothly and provides a lively introduction to the historic duo. Susan Hepler, formerly at Ohio State University, Columbus
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Language Notes

Text: English, German (translation) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications (June 1, 1962)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486201813
• ISBN-13: 978-0486201818
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #205,724 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A German Classic, January 24, 2005

By 

Boris Bangemann "boyse" (Singapore) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Max and Moritz (Dover Humor) (Paperback)

Wilhelm Busch (1832-1908) is known as the author of "Max and Moritz," but the scope of his works is much broader. He is not an author of children's books in the first place. He wrote many stories of satire and slapstick humor not primarily aimed at children, illustrated by his own drawings - for which he is justly famous. Some people even regard him as the father of the modern comic strip. Had he worked in our time, his equals would be the likes of F. K. Waechter, Tomi Ungerer, Jean-Jacques Sempé, and Ronald Searle.

Although the two cannot be compared, Busch's "Max and Moritz" ranks in Germany on the same level as Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland" in the English speaking world. Wherever an Englishman would quote Lewis Carroll's "Alice", a German is likely to quote Busch.

Children won't catch Busch's gentle satire in "Max and Moritz." The whole concept of satire is not familiar to them, of course. But while the little ones breathlessly follow the naughty pranks, Dad smiles at the fun Busch makes of the adults in "Max and Moritz." Widow Tibbets is a good example. While professing tender feelings for her chicks, she is in reality rather practical minded. So when Max and Moritz manage to kill her chickens - and the rooster, for that matter - she grieves, but not too deeply:

When the worthy Widow Tibbets
(Whom the cut below exhibits)
Had recovered, on the morrow,
From the dreadful shock of sorrow,
She (as soon as grief would let her
Think) began to think 'twere better
Just to take the dead, the dear ones
(Who in life were walking here once),
And in a still noonday hour
Them, well roasted, to devour.

In fact, Walter Arndt's translation in this edition is very good and captures precisely Busch's style.

Let me add a word of warning to trusting parents. Busch shares the mischievous streak in Max and Moritz, and while his two young protagonists play rather violent tricks on the townspeople - a taylor almost drowns and a teacher gets his face burned from an exploding pipe - Busch himself plays the most violent trick on Max and Moritz. In their last prank they cut open the grain sacks of a farmer who finds the two boys in their hiding place, drags them to a mill and has them ground to pieces, which - Gary Larson would have loved that part - are being eaten by two of the Miller's ducks:

"In with 'em!" Each wretched flopper
Headlong goes into the hopper.
As the farmer turns his back, he
Hears the mill go "creaky! cracky!"
Here you see the bits post mortem,
Just as Fate was pleased to sort 'em.
Master Miller's ducks with speed
Gobbled up the coarse-grained feed.

The good and upright people of the village are so relieved. Good riddance to Max and Moritz, they think. But of course they put that more politically correct:

Through the place in short there went
One wide murmur of content:
"God be praised! the town is free
From this great rascality!"

In short: this is great stuff for the kids if you manage to explain the fine points. As a starting point I recommend to brand the pranks of Max and Moritz as "very naughty" and take it from there. Once the kids begin to understand that the grinder is an even worse (adult) version of the two boys' malicious pranks you have won half the battle.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My dad's favorite book as a child, August 29, 2008

By 

B. Weaves - See all my reviews

This review is from: Max and Moritz (Dover Humor) (Paperback)

This was my dad's favorite book as a child. (To Dan, who made the comment about the Germans, my dad was a little Jewish boy in Nazi Germany and he spent 4 years in Nazi concentration camp, and this was still his favorite book that he always talked about as an adult.)

Kids love horror stories. Kids love to watch gory movies. This book is the mid 19th century version of comic book horror. It's very mild in comparison to the slasher flicks most kids have seen by the age of 8. It's just very politically incorrect compared with modern PC kiddie books. Still, the original Brother's Grimm stories were much gorier.

This particular version appears to have the English translation along with the original German.

5 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Required reading for all spoiled children!, August 24, 2004

By 

FOX (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Max and Moritz (Dover Humor) (Paperback)

A great classic book of "nursery ryhmes" for spoiled children to show them what happens to those that are nasty.

Max and Moritz play evil pranks on animals and people and in the end are thrown into a mill and ground up into feed and eaten up by ducks.

Nowadays, parents allow their kids to run around and scream, spill and break things and NEVER are the kids punished, the parents just smile and say: "Kids will be kids."

I wasn't that way when I was a kid. Because my parents TOLD me that was wrong and not to do it. Since parents today are not capable of teaching their kids, I supose these books are the only hope for saving our society.

I bought several of this book and others that are recommended by Amazon.com of similar nature to give to the tiny terrorists that run around yelling and screaming and destroying things around the neighborhood.

Since they probably don't know how to read and never read a book before, at least them showing the book to their parents should be a good wake up call to the parents that it is time to start TEACHING their kids not to do certain things that are evil.