I have just finished listening to "Don Quixote" by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. The audio book is over 36 hours and is very funny. It was written in the early 1600's and the author mentions that he was involved in the Battle of Lepanto.
The basic book is a satire, attacking all the books of knights and chivalry which were currently the rage. Don Quixote has gone mad, believing that the tales of knights are true and decides he, too, will be a knight errant. With his trusty squire, Sancho Panza, they go out seeking adventures which rarely end up as envisaged by Don Quixote.
The humour from over 400 years ago still comes through today. The translation is impressive. I suspect that the translator has replaced Spanish proverbs with similar English ones as they all seem to rhyme, which I would have thought would be difficult if this was a straight translation.
After listening to the story on my long drives home, upon my return I would glide next to Lana's chair, bend down on one knee and pronounce:
"Lana, my love. I have returned from my sally forth into the wilderness beyond our lands. I have fought corrupt data, wrestled with unbalanced ledgers and subdued unruly end users. I have brought order from chaos and run mighty reports. All this, I have done for you, my unparralleled beautiful Lana."
To which I was rewarded with her enigmatic smile. For what greater reward could I ask?
Wikipedia has quite a detailed entry on Don Quixote for those interested in more information.
The basic book is a satire, attacking all the books of knights and chivalry which were currently the rage. Don Quixote has gone mad, believing that the tales of knights are true and decides he, too, will be a knight errant. With his trusty squire, Sancho Panza, they go out seeking adventures which rarely end up as envisaged by Don Quixote.
The humour from over 400 years ago still comes through today. The translation is impressive. I suspect that the translator has replaced Spanish proverbs with similar English ones as they all seem to rhyme, which I would have thought would be difficult if this was a straight translation.
After listening to the story on my long drives home, upon my return I would glide next to Lana's chair, bend down on one knee and pronounce:
"Lana, my love. I have returned from my sally forth into the wilderness beyond our lands. I have fought corrupt data, wrestled with unbalanced ledgers and subdued unruly end users. I have brought order from chaos and run mighty reports. All this, I have done for you, my unparralleled beautiful Lana."
To which I was rewarded with her enigmatic smile. For what greater reward could I ask?
Wikipedia has quite a detailed entry on Don Quixote for those interested in more information.
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