Customer Reviews

Winnetou the Apache Knight

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

 

 

I was 15 years old in Hungary when I read the Karl May's stories of Winnetou and Old Shatterhand. What a great nostalgic experience it was to read them again, this time in english, over 50 years later.

I read most of Karl May's stories as a child. They were at that time translated into Czech. The stories are everything you could ask for. There is adventure, mystery,etc. You name it and it's in there. Deep down there are also non-assuming messages on how to be a good person. These books shaped my views on bigotry in a way no speech or lesson ever could have.

I grew up reading these adventures. I am tickeled pink that these stories are available on Kindle. I remember having the biggest crush on the Hero Winnetou and imagined that someone like him would really exist and would marry me. Even though I didn't care for adventures and gun slinger stories, butt this one and other stories written by th author have totally captivated my imagination. Karl May's stories are a must have for any library.

We purchased this book because my husband remembered his mother enjoying reading them decades ago in Prague when he was a boy. The easy read version was a mistake to get. The font was good, but the ubiquitous and omnipresent typos did not make reading easy. I read aloud and often had to stop and reread sentences because "on" should have been "of" or some other mistake was apparent. Bottom line, the book in this form was a disappointment.

I've read Winnetou about 6 or 7 times since the first time at the age of 10. It was in my native language, Polish. It was a wonderful read. This is no where near the book it's supposed to be.

My first issue is the typos and improper English that pops up all over the place. The dialog feels like old English instead of old wild west.

My second issue is the translation. It's horrible. Wrong choice of words...things taken out of context...

Third and biggest issue.... HALF THE BOOK IS MISSING! There's tons of details that were omitted. My Polish copy has 450 pages! I finished this book is about 2, maybe 3 hours. I think there's "Short Stories" out there that are longer.

If you have a love for Karl May books AVOID this one at all costs. If you can, read it in German or find a FULL and PROPER translation in your language.

The translation from German to English is really bad. The book is great though. I would suggest to try the same book by another translator.

I read all the Karl May books when I was eight or nine and loved them (as well as the movies with Lex Barker) . They are written in an archaic, stylistically complex German but the wonderful stories of honourable men, friendship and adventure in foreign lands transcended the language.

This English adaption is excellently done. The translator has found a perfect, classic style that reads beautifully and reminds us this is a book written in the late nineteenth century. She has condensed the story into a fast moving exciting narrative that should be more accessible to a modern reader than the original 400 page door-stop.

Yes, there are some typos in the text but not more than twenty. Well done, I will look forward to sharing this with my children. What about the other Old Shatterhand books and when will the Kara Ben Nemsi series come out?

Great read, Real page turner.
A eastern goes West and meets a old
scout. The knowledge he gains from him
plus his own skills enable him to surive
many horrowing encounters in the old west.

I bought 2 books for my grandsons for Christmas, being familiar with the story from my childhood. The story, abridged, which was not mentioned on this item, still is a great read. My biggest disappointment however were all the typos throughout the book. I feel it was not worth my money. I hope there is another publisher to do this better.