Journey to the West (4-Volume Boxed Set) | 
| Author: Cheng'en Wu
Creator: W.j.f. Jenner
Publisher: Foreign Languages Press
Category: Book
List Price: $44.95
Buy New: $22.88
You Save: $22.07 (49%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  29 reviews
Sales Rank: 37134
Media: Paperback
Pages: 2346
Shipping Weight (lbs): 3
Dimensions (in): 7.3 x 4.4 x 3.3
ISBN: 7119016636
EAN: 9787119016634
ASIN: 7119016636
Publication Date: January 1, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: LATEST 2007 Printed New edition. AUTHENTIC, in ORIGINAL SHRINK-WRAPPED condition. Brand NEW 4-volume set with slipcase. (100% Authenticity GUARANTEED) (without shrink-wrapping for internatonal and expedited shipping).
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Book Description
Journey to the West is a classic Chinese mythological novel. It was written during the Ming Dynasty based on traditional folktales. Consisting of 100 chapters, this fantasy relates the adventures of a Tang Dynasty (618-907) priest Sanzang and his three disciples, Monkey, Pig and Friar Sand, as they travel west in search of Buddhist Sutra. The first seven chapters recount the birth of the Monkey King and his rebellion against Heaven. Then in chapters eight to twelve, we learn how Sanzang was born and why he is searching for the scriptures, as well as his preparations for the journey. The rest of the story describes how they vanquish demons and monsters, tramp over the Fiery Mountain, cross the Milky Way, and after overcoming many dangers, finally arrive at their destination - the Thunder Monastery in the Western Heaven - and find the Sutra. Attached are a number of illustrations drawn during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).
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| Customer Reviews: Read 24 more reviews...
 this book rocks June 25, 2008
IF you like mythic kung fu movies, you will be thrilled with this book. Its 1000 times more baddazzz than any related movie or cartoon you could hope to see.
I would compare it to the Oz books mixed with the Orlando epics.
A little too perfect... January 7, 2008
Journey to the West, translated by W J F Jenner, is a little too good a translation. The Chinese love their bureaucracy. Numbers are very important and interesting to them as are titles and position.
Translating all the boring bits does not make for a good read, but it does make for an excellent insight into Chinese culture, not on a mythological level (the rest of the novel does a great job of that) but on the day to day level and how government affects their day to day life.
To that end, it's a very good translation. A bit boring at times, if you're not one for too much detail that bears little relevance to the plot. Characters are named with grand titles but never appear again, while minor characters will receive fully fleshed out back stories that seem tangential to the original story but soon tie neatly in.
A very good set of books. Interesting, boring at times, but as pure as it can be to the source material without learning one of the most difficult languages in the world.
Also, this is the story that inspired Monkey Magic and Dragon Ball. If you're fan of either, it's a good read just out of curiosity.
Journey to the West ( 4-Volume Boxed Set) December 28, 2007
This item I purchased for my oldest son. I taught him to like books so whenever possible I get him books. This is the type of book he is in to these days. Gathering knowledge in the way of reading books these days is such a joy that I strongly suggest this item to anyone that loves books as much as my son and I do.
 Great Book! May 16, 2007
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is a great Chinese classic! I think that the translation is not too bad (given its history), and it would be fun to read aloud. I like how the books are divided, and the illustrations from the Qing dynasty are also fascinating. As for the content, I think it is probably widely known among people who study Chinese culture. The most lovable character is obviously Monkey, who will stop at nothing to protect his feeble Buddhist master the Tang priest Sanzang. Zhu the pig is also interesting as an incessantly loathsome character who specializes in overeating and over-indulging in just about everything. The only character I think could have been more developed was Friar Sand.. :(. The most predictable one was Quan Yin who always ends up saving Monkey for the first two books. Some great moments were: the manfruit, the false Western Heaven, and of course Monkey's bad behavior in the first 20 chapters of the book. Its a great read for any age.
The Source of a Childhood Memory Found. May 7, 2007
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
When I was younger, I saw first on TV and then later at a Kiddies Mattinee a movie "Alakazam, the Great". If fascinated me, and as I studied more and more mythology, I realized that it must have come from a mythic source, and I tried to find that source for over 30 years. Last Spring I found out it was part of this book by watching a made for TV movies, called "The Monkey King". Here was the story I had been searching to find in this movie named and that is when I began to look for this book.
True this book has pages that are so thin that they are like tissue, but they have beautiful illustrations and in these illustrations are the characters of Alakazam, though he is only known as Monkey here in this Chinese Buddhist tale of pilgamage, and the adventures along the way.
I am used to Western Mythology, Classical, Norse, and Celtic so this was a journey that had new meaning for me. And like the characters of this journey, it is a journey into a new and as yet source of spirituality that has much influence in the world.
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