Customer Reviews

Pinocchio (New York Review Books)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'll leave it to others to assess the accuracy of Geoffrey Brock's new English translation of THE ADVENTURES OF PINOCCHIO. What I can say is that it reads really well for a North American reader, pungent and precise and funny. What an astonishing book! If you've never read it, or if you've only read it in "adapted" versions, here's a good opportunity to enjoy a faithful rendition. Note, however, that apart from a few decorations reproduced from a 1911 edition, this is NOT an illustrated version of the novel.
This edition comes with a brief, charming introduction by Umberto Eco, and a longer afterword by Rebecca West - full of interesting information and insights, but perhaps too ambitious: it reads more like an outline for a book than a self-sufficient essay. An excellent complement (and corrective) to West is Tim Parks's review of this edition in the New York Review of Books (30 April 2009 - there's a link from the Wikipedia entry on Carlo Collodi). Parks lays out the political, social, religious and personal background to Collodi's book clearly and entertainingly, and his article really increased my understanding and enjoyment.
Finally, consider checking out the recently issued DVD of English composer Jonathan Dove's full-length opera, THE ADVENTURES OF PINOCCHIO, a fantastically colorful and remarkably faithful adaptation of this classic novel.

This is not the Pinocchio of Walt Disney (the talking cricket gets whacked on page 15 with a hammer), rather this is the Pinocchio Disney used to create his version. Knowing that will make you appreciate Walt even more.

I'm not saying this is a bad read; on the contrary, I enjoyed this book, even though I caught myself comparing the storyline with the Disney movie way too often. There are many characters, and somehow Carlo Collodi has managed to make all of them not only essential, but interesting. The book is a magical tale about life; it's about adventure, comedy, dissapointment, shear joy, and imagination.