An impoverished hidalgo from a village in La Mancha spends so many nights reading tales of chivalry that he loses his grip on reality. Renaming himself Don Quixote, he puts on old armour, mounts his bony horse Rocinante, chooses a peasant woman as his idealised lady Dulcinea, and rides out to right wrongs. He recruits a practical, talkative farm labourer, Sancho Panza, as his squire with the promise of an island to govern.
Their adventures are a string of comic misunderstandings: windmills seen as giants, flocks of sheep as armies, inns as castles. The first part, published in 1605, also includes interpolated stories of love and intrigue. In the second part, published in 1615, the pair meet characters who have read the first book, and a scheming duke and duchess stage elaborate pranks for their amusement.
Often called the first modern novel, the book parodies romance while exploring the line between illusion and reality, madness and idealism. The partnership of the dreamer and the realist became one of literature's great double acts. Its influence runs through writers from Fielding and Dickens to Borges and Rushdie, and Edith Grossman's translation made it newly lively for English readers.
Book details
| Author | Miguel de Cervantes |
|---|---|
| First published | 1605 |
| Original language | Spanish |
| Translated by | Edith Grossman |
| Genre | Classic |
| Type | Fiction |
| Pages (approx.) | 940 |
| Setting | La Mancha and other regions of Spain, early 17th century |
Themes
- Illusion and reality
- Idealism
- Friendship
- Chivalry
- Storytelling
Who should read it
Readers who enjoy comic adventure and want to read the book often called the foundation of the modern novel.
If you liked this, try
- Tristram Shandy
- Gulliver's Travels
- The Count of Monte Cristo