The Short:
The Princess Bride: S.
Morgenstern’s Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure
By: William M. Goldman
4/5 Stars
What: A story within a story following true love and
fantastical adventure.
Recommended to those who like: Humor, Clean, literary
devices, sword fights, fantasy
Not recommended to those who dislike: some language, vague
endings, moderate to strong love element
The Long:
I have to admit that I had a hard time rating this one. The
movie is one of my favorites (I watch it pretty much every time I’m sick
because it has the ability to make me laugh even when I feel terrible). So,
when I went into the book, I might’ve set the expectations a little high.
Don’t get me wrong; it’s still a good book. Just realize
that (unlike most cases) the movie is probably better than the actual book. At
least, that’s my personal opinion.
The story begins by Mr. Goldman telling us that he’s
abridging a work that his father read to him as a young child. If you’re just
after the fantasy elements of the story, I would recommend skipping to where he
actually begins the abridgement (it might take a while to find where that’s
at). Then, since it’s an abridgement of a (fictional) book, Mr. Goldman
interrupts the story at several points to note what he’s omitted from the
story. It’s a little confusing if you’ve never read a book with that type of
literary device in it.
However, the meat of the story is great. There are sword
fights, plays on words, kidnappings, and, of course, true love. The “real”
story follows Buttercup, a farm girl, and Westley, her family’s helper. At the
beginning they fall hopelessly in love and the rest of the story is spent
trying to reunite them.
As you’ve probably figured out from most of my reviews, I’m
not too keen on love stories. I don't bear them any ill will. I just...can't get into them. This is actually one of the few love stories that I enjoy—mostly
because of the humor (and some epic sword fights).
Overall, I would recommend this book to someone who doesn’t
mind a little bit of a non-traditional style when it comes to storytelling, a
little bit of language, and a strong love element. I would recommend the movie
to pretty much anyone (yes, it’s “old” now, but it’s still really good!).
Now, for a special announcement!
This coming Tuesday, October 27th (or Wednesday, depending on where you happen to live), Mr. Benjamin J. Denen will be joining us for an author interview! Mr. Denen is the author of The Keeper of Edelyndia. His next book, Raulin: Rise of the Forest King, is set to release next Tuesday. Raulin is more of a "backstory" book, so definitely check it out, even if you haven't read The Keeper.
Thanks for putting up with my brief hiatus. I've included links to Amazon for the books, if you're interested (I'm not trying to make promotions for Amazon or anything; it's merely my preferred outlet for ebooks). I look forward to seeing you on Tuesday!
Ok, I feel like a horrible person because I didn't even know the book existed. It sounds good, though. (And the last time I watched the movie I was in 4th grade and it scared me to death, so I might have to go and read/rewatch it.) AND CONGRATULATIONS ON THE INTERVIEW!!!!
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I didn't know about the book until a couple years ago when I stumbled across it at the library. And then I didn't get around to reading it until about a month ago. The movie is a little scary when you're younger. (I watched it in like third grade and I was pretty terrified...coming from the girl who loved Star Wars by that point.) I would definitely recommend the movie over the book, personally.
DeleteThanks! I'm pretty stoked. Mr. Denen has been super helpful and willing to work with me.