Viaggio in occidente (1998)

Translator: Serafino Balduzzi

Publisher: Luni Editrice

Format: Hardback

Genre: Fantasy

Date: 1998

Pages: 1600 pages Number of issues: 2

ASIN: B0DM21TMMV

Language: Italian

Adaptation: Retelling

Summary:

The book represents the culmination of the legendary evolution surrounding the journey undertaken between 629 and 645 by the monk known as Tripitaka, who traveled from China to India to collect Buddhist sutras. In reality, Tripitaka did bring back and translate a significant portion of the current Buddhist canon. However, even before the year 1000, legends and tales were already circulating that transformed Tripitaka’s expedition into a fantastic adventure. The author of Journey to the West steers clear of the authentic account, gathering up every tall tale instead. He incorporates all the myths current in the country—including Indian myths (with echoes of the Ramayana) that had been heavily Sinicized—alongside storytellers' yarns, folk anecdotes, and a wealth of sayings and proverbs. Furthermore, he adds numerous inventions of his own. The book is not merely a collection of materials but the work of a distinctive personality—whoever he may have been—a man who fused the elements into a coherent whole, gave vent to his own moods, and let his imagination soar. In China, it is a book that belongs to everyone. During the Ming dynasty, it was read aloud in public squares; today, its protagonist, Monkey, is as popular as Mickey Mouse. Within the canon of classic Chinese novels, it is the shortest. Yet everything is relative: the vast array of adventures and characters—which showcases various mindsets, settings, and customs while illustrating virtually all the mythologies current in China—fills many pages; nevertheless, the author's inventiveness, good-humored wit, and biting satire make it a surprisingly fresh and entertaining read, while its structure of relatively independent episodes renders it all the more accessible. Wu Cheng’en (c. 1500–1582) served as a tutor in the household of Prince Jing and was a writer of mediocre verse. A tenuous web of conjecture supporting the attribution has formed around this book—which actually belongs to the category of anonymous works—yet, on the other hand, assuming that the book is indeed by Wu Cheng’en does not offer much help.

Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/48733642-viaggio-in-occidente