Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An old friend and some new ones, July 23, 2000
This book has the title "Candide and other stories", but the exciting part is the other stories. Yes "Candide" is a great work and perhaps the best satircal work of the 18th century, but it alone does not do justice to Voltaire's genius.Like a lot of people I had read "Candide" years ago for school and was impressed with the work. However, I soon forgot about it and never really thought about Voltaire's other works. As I was browsing Amazon one day I saw this book and thought it was time to revisit this old friend. Boy was I lucky. Three of the "other stories" are every bit as good as "Candide". "Micromegas" is a fine SciFi work from the 1740's. It comes complete with a Saturnian and Syrian and relates their struggle to understand the Earth's philosophies. "Zadig" unfolds in a similar manner to "Candide" but may be even more biting. Finally "The Ingenu" holds special interest for Americans as it chronicles the problems encountered by a young Huron "Savage" as he relocates to "Civilized" France. The final story "The White Bull" is not in the same class as the rest of the works in this book, but still is a fun read. It was nice to see my old friend "Candide", but even nicer to meet the new friends that are here. If you are considering buying one of the other copies which have only "Candide" the extra works here make this version so much richer.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Masterpiece of black comedy., September 12, 2000
Everyone has their own idea of the perfect book, a list of approved characteristcs they think will cohere into something magical. Instead of psychological realism or detailed descriptions of nature, I like brisk, multiplying narratives, stories within stories, digressions, picaresque journies, a profusion of character and incident, dreams, exoticism, strange lands, bookishness, adn relentless violence. 'Candide' has this, and more, and is therefore my perfect book. Like anything that is theoretically perfect (an equivalent in film might by Losey's 'Mr. Klein') is that one is left a little unsatisfied - after all, where's the element of surprise? There are further grounds for grumbling - Voltaire can often come across as an annoying, opportunistic jack-of-all-trades; while the sheer excess of plot, narrated in the same urbane toneslessness, always risks becoming monotonous. But such quibbles are ungrateful. 'Candide' is one of the few classics that is genuinesly entertaining and uproariously, blackly comic. The Enlightenment values today are less convincing than the deadpan depiction of pervasive evil and the randomness of human destiny. The book is full of horrific incident - earthquakes, massacares, gang-rapes, mutilation, burnings, etc. - and yet comes across as almost breezy, and always laugh-out-loud-funny. I wish Bunuel had filmed this.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Is Life Good?, June 4, 2007
Voltaire is a master saterist, not a comedian. As with all satire, it hslps if we understand the contemporary world in which the author writes, but Voltaire's skill raises Candide above this level of satirical writing. He is masterful in the use of comedy to poke fun at the customs, mores, and beliefs of his time and show us the silliness to shich theunenlightened mind can go in the pursuit of perfection in an imperfect world. As a commentator on human culture he is followed by Mark Twain. Not that Twain can match Voltaire in his skill, only in some of his perceptions. This is an "old" book by new world reckoning, but as a masterpiecce well worth the time and effort of exploaration it is a timeless masterpiece. I highly recommend it to both believer and non-believer.
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