Don Quixote Part One [Audiobook, Unabridged] [Audio Cassette]

Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (Author), Robert Whitfield (Narrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 2000

Trying to recreate the romantic ballads of the day, Don Quixote is content to inhabit the world of his imagination, dreaming of lovely Dulcinea.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“A wonderful, funny story that would make a fantastic introduction to the story of Don Quixote...I really enjoyed this one!" — Nicola Manning, Back to Books

"I highly recommend Campfire’s comics. They do what they are intended to do and do it in  a way that excites kids about classic literature."

— Chris Wilson, The Graphic Classroom (a resource for teachers and librarians) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra was born on September 29, 1547 in Spain. After some studies in Madrid, Miguel became a soldier at the age of 21. In 1571 he took part in the battle of Lepanto. While returning from military service, Miguel was kidnapped by Barbary pirates and enslaved in Algiers for five years. After several escape attempts, he was eventually ransomed and returned to Spain in 1580. Five years later Miguel entered the civil service, working as a tax collector and government purchasing agent. However, literary success eluded the author until the publication of Don Quixote in 1605. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks; Unabridged edition (January 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786112425
• ISBN-13: 978-0786112425
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.8 x 2.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,326,641 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This page is a mess, March 17, 2011

By 

P. R. Rustage - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Don Quixote Part One (Audio Cassette)

Amazon seem to have screwed up with this page. The information at the top relates to the excellent Blackstone Audio recording of Don Quixote read by Robert Whitfield. The picture, however, is of the Simon Vance recording. The "About the Author" section refers to David Case, a preacher who has no connection with this book whatsoever.

Anyway as to the review of the Blackstone audio book. The first thing to note is that this is only the first part of Don Quixote. Don Quixote was originally published in two volumes separated by 10 years so it is totally valid to publish the two volumes separately as here. Part 1 is the one most people will recognise as it contains the funniest stories and is generally more farcical than the deeper and darker part 2. The translation used here is that by Tobias Smollett, the C18th English writer. Smollett himself wrote humorous novels (Roderick Random and Peregrin Pickle) and so has a style that fits well with Cervantes original C17th Spanish but some listeners may prefer a present day translation and find C18th prose a little difficult. This is also an unabridged edition which means that some of the lengthier monologues from Quixote or conversations with Panza are reproduced in full. That may be a bad thing for some listeners who may find extended discourses on chivalry a bit repetitive. Finally, the reading is by Robert Whitfield, an ex-BBC announcer who has clear and expressive diction, a good range of voices and a lively and entertaining delivery. Couldnt imagine anyone doing it better. My only quibble is that he pronounces Quixote as "key - ho - tee" which although very common we now know is not correct (in C17th Spanish it would have been pronounced more like "key - shot")

All in all, if you want an authentic sounding, well read, unabridged edition you couldnt do better than this. However, if you are more used to light contemporary fiction then an abridged version of one of the more recent translations may be better for you.

5.0 out of 5 stars A fantastic Introduction to Don Quixote!, August 1, 2011

By 

Nicola Manning (Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Don Quixote: Part 1 (Campfire Graphic Novels) (Paperback)

Reason for Reading: I am quickly becoming a fan of this publisher, and I love well-done graphic retellings of classics.

I have never read the original Don Quixote, though I intend to one day. I have, however, read a very old children's retelling from the late 1880s by, I believe, Alfred J. Church. The story I read here in the graphic novel was identical to the one I had previously read before. From these adaptations I presume I am just missing some of the more bawdy aspects of the story, which are certainly hinted at in this adaptation. A wonderful, funny story that would make a fantastic introduction to the story of Don Quixote. As seems the pattern with Campfire's Classic series the book starts with a brief biography of Cervantes then gives us a main character's page before staring in with the story. The illustration is very nicely done showing us the 1500s way of life and when Quixote, in his madness, imagines he is in the grand old days of chivalry, there is a wavy line and a lightening in the colour to show us Quixote's distorted view of the same scenes as he imagines "common" women as ladies and windmills as giants. I really enjoyed this one! Am also looking forward to my next Campfire graphic read.